Marines to the Rescue
by spudtrooper
Summary: I haven't written WTR fan fiction in quite some time, roughly six years. This story was started about seven years ago, just never really finished it. It's about trials in the Walker's life and how they overcome them. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

-1The city was bustling with activity even for late night as John Norris and his twin brother Michael Garrison made their way to a local bar. They decided to meet in Dallas for the three year anniversary of their first time they met each other. For most of their lives they never knew that either one existed till they both enlisted in the Marines and wound up at the same base together. In the last few years they have become inseparable.

Michael pulled his coat tighter to his body. "I didn't know Texas got this cold."

John laughed. "I can definitely tell your a Florida boy." He looked around him at the bars that were still open. "So, do you want grudge or edge?"

"Hmm...edge." He began to make his way across the street when movement in an alley, just to his right caught his attention. A girl's blood curdling scream made him sprint into action. "John, do you have your phone on you?"

"Sure do." John began to run to the alley as a hooded man frantically ran out. Swiftly he went to the man, noticing quickly he wouldn't be able to catch him unless he tackled. Taking a deep breath he lunged out hitting the guy square in the back. "Don't move!"

The man began to squirm. "Let go of me!" He began to swing his arms violently almost hitting John a couple of times. "Let me go!"

Without warning another man came charging at John hitting him square in the back, sending him flying forward. All John could do was wait for his body to stop moving before he returned the attack. When he skidded to a stop he quickly rushed at the men with a punch each knocking both out. Looking down at the men while shaking the pain out of his hand he noticed Michael was sprinting towards him.

Michael skidded to a stop. "You're needed in the alley."

Instantly John began to run at a full sprint as his mind clicked to medic mode. As he made his way into the alley he spotted a man sprawled out underneath a faint door light. He can tell by all the blood coming from the victim's head there was a serious head injury involved. When he knelt down he noticed right away the man's face was destroyed with obvious fractures making the face look sunken in. Checking the pulse he noticed that the man was barely alive.

A whimper made him look behind his shoulder. "Ma'am, are you okay?"

A young girl came out of the shadows. "I didn't want to do it!" She cried out. "I didn't mean for this to happen!"

"What happened?" He asked the girl.

She wiped her face. "This gang wanted to rape me and brought me here. This man I guess heard and came to help me." Her voice was shaking as she began to cry. "He was about to win when a rock came out of no where and hit him in the head."

John cursed knowing this man needed a hospital soon. Quickly he dug into his pocket for his phone and dialed 911. While on the phone he began to check the man's injuries disgusted at what he saw. It appeared by the man's wounds the blows to his face and chest were made out of pure anger.

"How is he?" Michael asked as he knelt down.

"Not good." John began to get worried as the man started to go into convulsions. He had to question the 911 operator. "How much longer till an ambulance gets here, the man is going into convulsions? What? Can't ya get a helicopter? Why? The weather is nice what are you talking about?" He looked up at the sky as snow began to fall along with sleet. "Darn it! Hurry up this man won't make it!"

Michael looked around him at the garbage. "We can make a stretcher."

Nodding John began to take off his belt to use it as a strap. "Listen, ma'am I can meet the ambulance. Don't worry I know what I'm doing." He looked up as Michael found a good piece of board and rope. "Ma'am, please calm down. Where is the ambulance going to be coming from?" After the operator told him he nodded to Michael who started to get the man ready to move.

Soon the men had the victim tied to the board and ready to be carried out when the man yet again went into strong convulsions almost shaking the board loose from the brother's grasp. Cursing John and Michael dropped the board softly and checked the man's pulse. He shook his head when he realized the men's breathing and pulse was very weak.

"Michael, let me see your lighter and pen." When Michael handed the items to John, John then took out his pocket knife and began to heat the blade. As he did he noticed a small crowd starting to form. "Get these people away from here!"

Quickly Michael started to wave at the crowd telling them to move away as John made a chest tube with the pen. He took a deep breath as he slowly cut into the man's chest, the hot blade making the man wince loudly. The victim little out a loud grunt as John worked the tube through the cut and into the lung. As he did he can see the man relaxing a lot more as blood slowly came out. He looked up as the sleet began to come down harder.

Michael ran to John. "I don't hear sirens yet!" He went to the man's right side. "You ready?"

"Yeah." John lifted the man and began to slowly walk out of the alley as the crowd departed.

A man ran up to them, his attention quickly going to the man in the stretcher. "I have a truck!"

John nodded, his heart racing. "Where is it?"

"Right there!" The man pointed to a truck just parked by the alley. "Why aren't you waiting for the ambulance?"

"Because this man needs to go to the hospital now!" After the man was placed comfortably in the back of the truck using blankets and coats John called 911 again. "Yes, I'm the gentleman with the man that was badly beaten. Yes, I know they are on their way sir, but it's taking too long! We're going to go in a truck. I know it's dangerous but what…" John paused to listen to the frantic operator. "Sir, we cannot wait fifteen more minutes!" Cursing John pounded on the window signaling for the truck to go.

On the way to the hospital John couldn't help but to check the man again and again hoping they had made the right decision. Suddenly a large bump came making the man moan in pain which made John really happy. The man had shown pain recognition twice now, that was definitely a good sign indeed. Quickly he took hold of the man's hand and he could almost feel the man squeezing back.

After a few minutes of breaking every road law in the book they arrived at a hospital. Quickly John put the tailgate down then started to get the man out with Michael helping him. As they began to carry the man to the door a group of hospital personal came rushing out with a stretcher.

"All right we can take it from here." Said a doctor whose voice trailed once he saw the pen sticking out of the men's chest. "What is that?"

"Chest tube." John watched as the man was carried off then knelt down mentally exhausted at what just happened. He knew he had worse patients then this before, for some reason this man hit him hard. Taking a deep breath he looked at his bloody hands then at Michael. "I'm going to get washed up."


	2. Chapter 2

-1**Two Days Later**

The night was chilly as Alex took water off the stove for the hot chocolate. Pouring it into a glass she began to mix cocoa in it when she got a strange feeling. Looking around she just pulled the blanket tighter to her as she made her way into the living room. When she did Erika stood up from the couch and went up to Alex.

"Why don't you sit down and try to relax." She said helping Alex to the couch.

Alex slowly nodded. "I'm trying, but it's been two days and he still hasn't come home." She wiped the tear from her eye. "If he was on a mission surely he would of told me." She took a sip of her hot chocolate then looked up at Erika. "Thanks for helping me out with Angela."

"No, problem." She sat down then patted Alex's shoulder. "Jimmy, is doing his best in finding where Walker is at." The phone rang beside them. "I'll get that."

Nodding Alex sipped the cocoa thinking about where Walker had to be at. He had gone to check out a lead two days ago and still hasn't come home. Angela who was just two years old couldn't understand why daddy hasn't come home yet. She tried to explain to her daughter that dad would come back, unfortunately she couldn't do it without almost bursting out in tears herself.

Erika slowly turned to Alex. "They found Walker."

Alex choked on her cocoa. "What happened? Is he alright?"

Her friend just looked down. "Jimmy, found him at Methodist. Alex, his in the coma wing."

"Can you watch Angela for me?" She said slowly standing up, her mind reeling over the news.

Erika nodded. "Sure thing." She patted Alex's shoulder. "His going to be alright. His going to be just fine." She took a deep breath. "Trivette, will be here to pick you up. You don't need to drive."

Nodding in shock Alex took the blanket off. "That's a good idea."

Later at the hospital Alex found herself walking down a huge hall surrounded by big open rooms. The doctor was telling her something, but all she could think about was what was said about her husband. It seemed that an assailant had tried to kill Walker with three pound rock causing almost every bone in his face to brake.

They stopped at a room with a strange man laying on a bed very still. Peering in she couldn't see anything that told her that the man was her husband. Was the doctor mistaken? This man couldn't possibly be her husband.

The doctor took a deep breath. "His in a very deep coma. You can decorate the room anyway that you want, this will be his room for his remaining time here."

The news hit Alex hard. "What are you saying that he won't wake up?"

"In this kind of coma, not likely. It's a miracle his made it this far." He went up to the bed and looked down. "His face is broken in over twenty-five different places, he has a very bad head wound which caused his brain to swell and his chest cavity is seriously injured as well. Now, there is a cot here and only one person can stay the night at one time."

Watching him walk off Alex went up to Walker's bed not believing the man was her husband. His face was badly swollen, bruised and covered in blood blotched bandages. Half his head was shaved revealing a very detailed area where they had cut and stapled his skull back together. His chest was covered in bruising and blood blotched bandages as well which hid his muscled torso.

She began to cry when she saw the tube coming out of his throat. "Why did they have to do that Jimmy?"

Jimmy gave Alex a hug. "His jaw was broken in more then eight places, not only that, his nose was crushed. They decided to put the tube in his throat instead of his mouth, so he can breath easier."

She pulled up a chair then wearily sat down next to her husband. "Did he loose any teeth?"

"Yeah, I think the doctor said two or three. Two are in the front and one was a molar." He rubbed his face as he to sat down. "Also they told me his right eye orbit is shattered and he may not be able to see normal again. Their waiting for him to get stronger before they do surgery."

"How could something like this happen Jimmy?" She gently took hold of Walker's cold hand . "Walker, is very quick. This shouldn't have happened."

He took a deep breath. "A couple of men told me that the rock had hit him first. Then the same rock was used to..." His voice began to crack as he tried to tell the story. "They said they were gang members, but I can't see gangs doing this."

Alex looked at Walker's swollen face. "How come it took two days to locate him?"

"He had no identification on him and his face was so badly swollen and damaged the doctors thought he was dead. But two men told him to keep him alive."

"Who are these men?" Alex said her voice shaking.

Trivette dug into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. "John Norris and Michael Garrison both are active Marines. Norris is a medic and Garrison is a sniper."

She began to cry. "Did Norris keep Walker alive?"

"Yeah, he did."

She turned to Trivette with tears streaming down her face. "I want to meet these men."

The hotel was quite as John laid on his bed still thinking about the man. It has been two days since the attack and yet he has heard very little. Today they finally talked to a Texas Ranger who was the partner of the man who was brutally attacked. The Ranger had told John and Michael that the man's name was Ranger Cordell Walker, a highly respected man in Dallas.

Taking a deep breath he rolled over to his side to look at Michael who was reading a newspaper. After a few minutes John had to ask what was so important to entrance his brother so much.

Michael turned the paper around. "It's the man." He pointed to a picture of a middle-aged Texas Ranger. "He has a wife and a two year old daughter." He smiled slightly. "The dude was a Marine Reconnaissance Officer in Vietnam."

John took the paper from Michael and began to read the article. "They talk about him like he was a legend." He smiled when he remembered a story that their drill sergeant told them. "I think this is Nighthawk or Captain Walker that Drill Sergeant Williams was talking about." He rubbed his face thinking about the story. "I believe he told us that Captain Walker was a POW, shot more times then most men and still fought for his country."

"Your right I think that this is the man. What are the odds that we saved a legend?" Michael shook his head then looked down at his stomach. "Don't know about you, but I'm starting to get really hungry."

"There's this grill and bar not too far from here in the stockyards." John smiled then stood up stretching. "I'll buy."

Michael beamed and perked up just slightly. "Well, in that case I can't pass that up."

At the bar John found a booth along a wall and as he waited for the waitress he began to look at all the pictures on the wall as his brother looked through the menu. He couldn't believe all the pictures of Texas Rangers that were posted. Suddenly a photo made him grab Michael's hand, startling his brother. Michael began to question why but soon spotted the photo too.

"The dude is everywhere in here." Michael leaned over the table to get a better look at the photo. "He looks really young." He smirked. "He almost looks like us."

"Yeah." John looked up as a waitress came over to their table. "Excuse me ma'am, but who is this man in this photo right here?" He tapped the photo in question.

The waitress smiled weakly. "That's Ranger Walker. He was like a son to the man who owned this restaurant." She took a deep breath. "That was when he first made it into the Texas Rangers."

Michael looked around the restaurant. "His photos are everywhere."

She smiled. "Yeah, his a living legend down here in Texas. I heard that he is going to receive the Medal of Valor for saving the girl." She took a deep breath then took out a pen. "What can I get for you guys today?"

"We'll, both have the specials with tea." Michael handed the waitress the menu then turned to John. "So, John what are you thinking?"

His brother got a quizzical look on his face. "Why do you say that?"

"You got that look on your face. Is it about Ranger Walker?" John slowly nodded. "Listen, John we don't even know this man. This man is dieing right now in a hospital room and..." He took a deep breath. "We just prolonged it for him."

John's anger quickly rose. "We did not prolong it!" He shook his head, frustrated at his brother's words. "I can't believe that you even said that!"

"Well, if you look at it the man had severe facial trauma that most times kills a man..."

"And that is why we saved him!" John said interrupting Michael.

Michael ran his fingers through his hair. "Listen, the man had..." He quickly stopped when he spotted Texas Ranger Trivette. "It's Ranger Trivette."

John turned to the door. "I'm going to go talk to him." He gradually stood up then made his way to the black Ranger. When he got to him he took a deep breath then stuck out his hand. "Hello, we've met before."

Ranger Trivette nodded. "Yes, I would like to thank you and your friend." He looked at the table then smiled. "Sorry, your brother."

"Oh, we get it all the time. We were separated when we were just babies, but we found each other in the Marine Corp and soon found our mom." He shook his head. "Enough about me how is Ranger Walker doing?"

The older man took a deep breath. "He's the same. He had a seizure last night that is worrying the doctors. And he has infection in his lungs." He wiped his face with his hand. "Sorry." He took a deep, shaky breath. "Uhm...But he's alive and I have you two to thank." He took another deep long breath. "Alex, his wife would like to see you two."

John turned back to Michael then back to the Ranger. "When?"

"Soon will be good. Did you guys order lunch?"

"Yeah, it should be coming out now. Would you like something to eat?"

Ranger Trivette shook his head. "Nah, I'm not hungry." He turned to who appeared to be the manager. "Maria, the two gentleman in booth twelve make theirs on the house." When the woman nodded in agreement Ranger Trivette turned back to John. "I'll meet you guys in the waiting room in the coma ward at Methodist."

Nodding John went back to the table and sat down wearily. "He wants us to meet Ranger Walker's wife tonight."

"Where at?" Michael questioned while he took a plate of food from the waitress.

"The coma ward." John laced his fingers then rested them under his chin. "I just hope we don't see Ranger Walker. I don't know how I'll be able to handle it."


	3. Chapter 3

Later that night Alex sat by Walker's bed slowly rubbing her husband's hand. Once in awhile his fingers would twitch, but she knew that it was just a muscle spasm. Earlier today he had a very bad seizure that made Doctor Miller think there was more damage done to Walker's brain then he had originally thought. Because of that Walker was sent for a CAT scan and exploratory surgery. As it turned out there were large blood clots forming which made his brain swell even worse. Doctor Miller did tell her with the clots removed the extra pressure taken off of Walker's brain, he should make better progress. But he also warned her circumstances could change at any given minute.

She patted Walker's hand then tried to smile. "Angela, drew you a picture this morning. She's coming in later to give it to you." She wiped away the tears. "It's been three days Walker. Surely you'll wake up anytime." Looking at the swollen face and now shaved head she choked up. "Why didn't you see it coming Walker? What got you so distracted that you didn't hear them?"

A light knock came at the door. "Alex, the gentleman are in the waiting room."

Turning around she saw Jimmy leaning against the door frame. She glanced down at Walker then slowly stood up. "Thank you, Jimmy."

Looking one more time at her husband she went down the hall to the waiting room. As she walked in her breath caught in her throat as she caught sight of the two men. There, standing in the middle of the room were men who could pass as Walker's sons. They both had the brownish-red hair and the puppy dog green eyes.

One of the twins walked up to Alex smiling. "Hello, my name is John Norris and this here is my brother, Michael Garrison."

Alex gave John a hug. "Thank you so much for saving my husband."

John gave her a hug then pulled back. "In the line of duty ma'am." He gave her a slight shrug. "I was just doing what I was trained to do."

She nodded. "I know." She looked at Michael then back at John. "Would you like to see him?"

Michael gave Mrs. Walker a gentle smile. "Sure ma'am."

"Okay." She began to walk down the hall with the men at her side. Suddenly she stopped and turned to face them. "What exactly happened? Do you know?"

John sighed, still frustrated at himself for not reaching the man sooner. "No, ma'am, I don't." He looked at a window to see a man heavily bandaged and laying very still on a bed. "I just saw the after effects ma'am."

Alex couldn't believe how the men almost sounded like Walker, it was rather eerie. Instead of bringing it up she pointed to the window behind her. Michael walked over to it then leaned his head against the pane of glass as he took a deep breath.

"John, this man..." Michael stepped back from the window and shook his head. "He looks really bad."

"His doctor, Doctor Miller told me that he would be dead right now if it wasn't for you two." She sighed then turned to Trivette who stood up from his chair by Walker's bed. "Again, I thank you for saving my husband."

Michael nodded. "Your welcome ma'am."

After a few more minutes of talking the men left leaving Alex alone once again alone with Walker and Trivette. As she stepped up to her husband's bed Trivette moved over to give her room. Just as he did this Walker's body began to shake ever so slightly. Soon he began to grunt as the seizure became more fierce.

Quickly Doctor Miller ran in with a team of two nurses behind him. "You two need to get out of here!"

Alex backed out crying as she did. "Why is this happening?"

Trivette gave her a big hug, he himself holding back the tears. "Don't you worry, things will get better."

**Four Days Later**

The hospital was quiet as usual when Alex made her way to Walker's room with a small box of decorations. In the week of his stay his room was beginning to look more comforting then when he was first admitted. Most of the pictures that decorated the walls were coloring pages sent by Angela. There was also some balloons and flowers in the room thanks to generous friends and associates. She placed the box on the table then took out a small stuffed wolf.

She smiled then placed the wolf in between Walker's right arm and chest. "This was sent by Angela." She squeezed Walker's hand. "You know those young men? Well, they returned to California yesterday. They're Marine's just like you." She took a deep breath. "They look and talk just like you Walker. Almost makes me think..." She had to stop thinking bad thoughts, that wouldn't help her cope with the situation in front of her. "Honey, I got to tell you what Angela did. She was playing with Scooter and..." She couldn't go anymore as she began to cry.

She looked at Walker's still swollen face not believing the man was her husband. For a week she studied this face trying to find anything that would seem like the old Walker. The swelling was starting to go down gradually, but each time it did the doctors would have to do more surgery on his jaw and eye orbit. So far Walker has had three surgeries for his jaw and two for his eye orbit. Unfortunately there were plenty more scheduled for the weeks to come.

Sighing she was about to sit down when something caught her attention. Looking up at Walker she noticed that his left eye was open. Quickly she began to call for Doctor Miller as she leaned over her husband. When she did she could have sworn she saw his eye following her. He was about to close his eye when Doctor Miller came rushing in.

Doctor Miller ran up to Walker's bedside then turned to Alex stunned. "It could just be a reflex, but it appears that he is awake. I'm going to do more tests. If he is awake then it's a miracle. But it will take more to really see what kind of brain damage he has."

Nodding Alex gave Walker's hand a squeeze. "You're doing it honey. You're doing it."

"Walker, do you hear me?" Asked Doctor Miller as he took hold of Walker's left hand. "Walker, if you do squeeze my hand?" Walker began to squirm as he let out a low moan. "Calm down." Walker slowly stopped moving. "Do you hear me?" Doctor Miller smiled when he saw Walker's fingers move. "That's it, keep fighting."

Trivette ran in worried. "What's the matter?"

Alex looked at him smiling. "He's awake!"

"What?" Trivette ran up to Doctor Miller then looked down at Walker. "Is it true Doctor Miller?"

Doctor Miller shook his head. "Not to sure, but it looks like it." He had to smile himself as he gently patted Walker's shoulder. "You're definitely a fighter, just keep what you're doing Walker and everything will be all right."


	4. Chapter 4

The next day Walker's eye was open however he did nothing, but just stare at the ceiling. His right eye was open just a tiny slit but was still swollen from surgery. Each time she would talk to him he would just moan or twitch his fingers. She smiled at Walker then took out a sponge stick and dipped it in water.

"I know this hurts but your lips are getting chapped." Slowly she began to run the sponge over his cracked lips making him moan. "Sshh...take it easy. Just one more time." After she was done she looked at his mouth which was swollen and slightly open showing a lot of wire work inside. "That must hurt honey."

She took a bigger sponge then dipped it in cool water making sure it had plenty of water. Since Walker has gotten a little stronger she would squeeze a bit of water in his mouth. He would swallow it, but it could be just an automatic reaction. She placed the sponge gently over his mouth then lightly squeezed it, allowing drops of water to fall through his lips. Instantly he began to swallow as the drops hit his tongue.

"That's it. You stay strong for us." She put the sponge away then looked at him. She wanted so badly to touch his face, to let him know that everything is all right, sadly the bruising told her otherwise. Instead she picked his hand up once again, studying it like she has been doing for the last week. "Walker, you can tell you didn't fight back. You have no bruising on your hands or arms." She began to cry. "It shows that you were out when you were attacked."

She sighed heavily then slowly stood up and went to the window. She always thought it was weird to have a window in a room where the patient is always sleeping, must be for the visiting family. However she liked looking out through the glass to see the snow covered cars. It rarely snows like this in Dallas and she wished that Walker was awake to see it. Looking behind her at her husband she shook her head still wishing that the attack didn't happen.

"Hey, do you need company?" Asked Trivette as he made his way into the room.

"I can always use some." She crossed her arms then went up to him. "Have you talked to the twins lately?"

He shook his head. "I tried to write them, but they were shipped to Bosnia for a two year stint." He glanced down at Walker and shook his head. "Has Doctor Miller said anything yet?"

"No." She went up and gave Trivette a hug. "Jimmy, what am I to do? Angela can't keep seeing her dad like this."

Trivette hugged her back. "Erika, brought her tonight, their waiting in the waiting room now. If you don't want her to come see Walker then we can send her home."

Alex shook her head. "No, bring her in. Walker needs to hear her voice."

In a few minutes the little bundle of joy came bounding into the room with another coloring page in her hands. She ran up to Alex, jumped up into her arms then gave her a big hug. Alex then kissed her daughter on top of the head.

Angela lifted up a coloring page showing a purple and blue elephant. "I colored this for daddy."

"It's so beautiful!" She took the page and handed it to Trivette who taped it above Walker's bed.

"Can I hug daddy?" Angela asked giving Alex a sad look.

Alex nodded with a smile. "You sure can, but be very careful." She carried Angela to Walker's bed then gently laid her beside him. Her daughter gently snuggled into Walker's side which made him shift his weight ever so slightly. Seeing it Alex turned to Trivette smiling. "Did you just see that?"

Trivette nodded, smiling also. "Yeah, I think he knows she's there." He went up to Walker. "His eye is open. I wonder if he sees anything."

Erika stepped to the bed smiling. "I bet he does." She sighed. "Where are Gage and Sydney? I haven't seen them for awhile."

Trivette sat down in a chair. "They went undercover and have been undercover for about two months. They are so close in breaking the case they can't leave until they do. But when they do I know this will be the first place they will come."

Angela laid her head on Walker's chest. "When daddy waking up?"

Alex came over and gave her a big hug. "We don't know." She gave Walker a slight kiss on his forehead and when she did she thought he looked at her. Giving him another kiss she definitely can see his eye staring at her. She looked up with a grin. "He's looking at me."

Quickly Trivette went up to Walker and smiled as well. "Hey, buddy." He took hold of Walker's hand. "Squeeze my hand if you know that I'm here." Very slowly Walker's hands curled. "He knows were here!" Trivette turned to Erika and gave her a big hug. "He knows were here!"

Erika gave Jimmy a huge hug back. "See, Walker will be back to normal in no time." Her voice quickly faded away as Walker's body began to slightly shake. "His having a seizure!" As she said this she scooped up Angela and made it out of the room.

Doctor Miller ran in with two nurses. "You all need to get out."

Once out of the room Alex quickly made her way to Angela who was being held by Erika. Reaching out for Angela she started to apologize to her young daughter who had begun to cry.

Angela sobbed. "Why daddy do that for?"

"Daddy has a head injury." Alex took a deep breath to stop from crying herself. "He's going to be acting like this for awhile."

"Can you fix daddy?" Angela questioned as she snuggled into Alex's shoulder.

"We're trying sweetie. We're trying." Alex turned back as Doctor Miller came walking out of Walker's room. "What is happening doctor?"

Doctor Miller shook his head. "It appears that Walker might have suffered trauma induced seizures or epilepsy." He looked behind him at Walker then turned back to Alex. "We will have to do some tests tomorrow."

Nodding Alex tried not to cry. "So, this will be a recurring thing?"

"I'm afraid so. If he wakes up, he might have to be on medication for it." He sighed. "We will start administrating him some medication that should help with the seizures. We are going to take another CAT scan to see if anything is wrong. More then likely, it's just an after effect of the damage done to his brain."

After Doctor Miller left Alex went to the waiting room and placed Angela down in a chair. She lowered her head in her hands wishing that her dad was right here with her. She felt a few loving pats on her shoulders, but right now she needed a hug from her dad. Looking up she spotted Erika playing with Angela on the floor. Erika had brought a board game, actually brought several and appeared to be playing a game of Chutes and Ladders with Angela.

Alex looked up at Trivette. "Do you think anything will be the same again?"

He sat down while taking a deep breath. "Only God knows now."


	5. Chapter 5

**A Month Later**

Making a trip to the hospital was now a daily routine for Alex as she parked in the visitors lot on Methodist. Before she got out she grabbed the box from the front seat then closed the door with her hip. As she slowly walked to the entrance she passed a few nurses that she got to know from Walker's stay here. She chatted with them for a bit then continued on her way.

After a few twists and turns in the hallway she finally made it to Walker's room on the rehabilitation ward. As she stepped inside the room she could see her husband laying on the bed sleeping. Quietly she placed the box down then found a seat in a chair by his bed.

In a month Walker has made a miraculous recovery surprising most doctors in the hospital. He still has problems with blurred vision out of his right eye and had numerous surgeries on his jaw. He also has had three other surgeries to remove small blood cots in his brain. Because of this he was still very weak and hardly moved even though Alex knew he wasn't in the coma anymore.

She took hold of his hand then squeezed it gently. "Hey, honey I'm here." Slowly Walker rolled his head over to face her then opened his eyes. "Are you going to talk to me today?" For an answer she got the slow closing of his eyes as he fell back to sleep. "You know Walker it's been over a month since I heard your voice." She took a deep breath trying to control herself from crying. "Just wish this never happened."

Walker opened his eyes as a tear escaped his left eye. Feeling really bad Alex began to apologize as she gently wiped his face with her hand. Looking at his eyes she could see the pain that they held probably from what she just said. Squeezing his hand she gently placed a kiss on his swollen lips.

"Honey, I'm sorry." She traced a scar on his left cheek made from a nasty cut from the attack. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It..." Walker swallowed hard as he rolled his eyes over to Alex. "Not…fault." His voice was slurred and almost a whisper from the wires keeping his jaw aligned and the tube in his throat, but none the less it was his voice.

Alex began to cry out of happiness. "Walker, are you hurting?" Slowly Walker nodded his head. "Okay, I'm going to get Doctor Miller for you."

Walker slowly shook his head and mouthed, "No." He lifted his hand up to her. "Sorry, I..." He took a very deep long breath, the breathing tube in his throat clicking as he did. "Can't…talk."

She nodded in understanding. "Honey, I know. You don't need to talk. Save your energy." She smiled. "I got something for you, Angela made it in preschool for you." She got up went to the box and pulled a paper mache of some animal. "Angie, made this for you, it's suppose to be a horse." She smiled. "If you use some imagination it becomes one." She placed the lopsided horse on the table and gave Walker a grin. "Your daughter is quite the artist."

"I've seen..." Walker closed his eyes tight then opened them back up. "I see..." He took a deep breath as he mouthed the words. "wall."

Alex looked around her, her smile beaming. "That's true." She looked down at Walker. "You don't need to talk honey if it hurts that bad."

Walker nodded. "I..." He took a deep breath, grimaced, then mouthed. "Do that."

As she watched Walker fall to sleep she couldn't help but to think that everything will soon be all right. Having him talk to her little as it was helped her out a lot emotionally. At first she thought that Walker's brain injury might have effected his vocabulary and memory but this brief moment of lucidity told her otherwise. He was fully aware of his surroundings just in a lot of pain. As she was about to tuck his blanket tighter to his body his physical strengthening nurse, Robert Morehouse came walking into the room.

"Well, hello there Alex how is my patient today?" He said stepping up to Walker's side.

She smiled. "He talked today. He says it hurts for him to talk."

Robert nodded his head. "I don't blame him. Poor guy's jaw was broken in ten places and he has had seven surgeries on it all together. I'm actually amazed he could actually talk with the trachea in. Most patients can't." He shook his head. "It must take a lot of effort for him to do it."

"Walker, is a fighter." She gently ran her hand across his shaved head, her fingers tracing the many scars that crisscrossed his skull. "What are you going to do today?"

"Well, I was thinking about stretching out those legs, but it appears that he's asleep." Robert took hold of Walker's hand. "Walker, are you awake, if so squeeze my hand." He got light movement from Walker's fingers. "Okay, I'm going to start moving your legs to get some blood flowing into them."

Robert lifted Walker's legs as he did Walker softly moaned and opened his eyes. Alex took hold of her husbands hand trying to reassure him. Slowly he began to relax his body and drift back to sleep.

**Bosnia**

The night was really cold as John made his way to the bunker after a hard day patrolling. Taking off his helmet he threw it on his bed then made his way to where a few guys were playing poker. He sat down in an empty chair still thinking about what went on today. Today alone he had to help out with one fatality and two gun shot victims.

One of the Marines, Sergeant David Smith turned to him. "Heard from your bro yet?"

John shook his head. "Nah, and I probably won't get a call till our stint is over. May get a few letters, but that's all." He took a deep breath. "He got transferred to Germany after word leaked out that we were brothers." He took a deep breath. "We haven't been separated this long for awhile."

Sergeant Mark Miller another Marine at the table shook his head with a smile. "You can definitely tell that your a twin." He placed his hand down then turned to John. "I've been meaning to ask you about that man you told us about that you helped in Texas."

"Oh, Ranger Walker. I write to his friend Ranger Trivette." He took a deep breath and laced his fingers together. "Why you ask?"

"Nothing really." Sergeant Miller got up stretching. "I'm going to hit the sack."

Nodding John was about to get up when Captain Hoover came walking in. Quickly all the Marines saluted and stood at attention.

Captain Hoover nodded. "At ease gentleman." He took a deep breath then turned to John. "Sergeant Norris I'm afraid to tell you that your mother was involved in a serious car accident. They don't expect her to make it. You have permission for emergency leave, Marine."

John took a deep breath. "Thank you sir." He saluted then watched as the Captain left still stunned at the news. He thought it was Michael, but his mother? He didn't even know that his mother cared enough about him or Michael to ask for them on her death bed.

Sergeant Miller shook his head. "You thought it was your brother didn't you?"

Nodding slowly John went to his bunk and began packing. "Yeah, gave me a scare. I don't understand why my mother would like to see me now."

Sergeant Smith seemed stunned. "Why do you say that?"

"I was adopted into a family. My mom didn't really care for me, neither has my dad. I haven't seen my mom my entire life." He threw some clothes in his military issued bag. "I don't know what to say to her."

"Say, 'Why do you want to see me now?'" Sergeant Miller said while shrugging. "I mean what more can you say?"

John nodded. "Your right. Hopefully I'm not too obvious about not knowing her."

"Believe me you will, but just play it off." Private Smith said while smiling.

Later that night he sat on his bag at an airstrip waiting for his plane to arrive. As he waited he blew into his hands trying to get some warmth into them. As he started to rub his arms he saw a lone figure making it's way down to him. When the figure got closer he realized it was Michael.

He quickly got up and ran to his brother. "Michael, what are you doing here?"

"I got a lift." He took a deep breath. "Why do you think mom wants to see us now after twenty-two years?"

"She's on her deathbed." John sighed then looked up as a cargo plane begin to taxi down the runaway. "We will soon know!" He said yelling over the loud engines.

Twelve hours later both brothers got off the plane sore and stiff from the rather bumpy ride over to the Sates. Grabbing his bag John began to get out of the plane when he realized that it was snowing. Turning to Michael he smiled at his brother who was shivering badly.

He laughed. "You know I was thinking about something. They stationed a Florida boy in Germany. How do you like it?"

Michael pulled his artic fur lined hood over his face. "I know I'm a Marine, but the cold is not cut out for me." He started to walk over to a jeep. "Are you nervous?"

John sighed. "Honestly, it took us fourteen hours to get here. If she's still alive..." He stopped in mid-sentence when he remembered how Ranger Walker fought off death. "Let's just go and see what she wants."

At the hospital John sat in the waiting room staring at the door watching the snow fall down heavily. He had visited Virginia before five years ago on a snowboarding trip. And now he sat in a hospital waiting room wondering why he and Michael had to make the trip here.

A doctor came up slowly. "Are you John Norris and Michael Garrison?"

Nodding John got up. "Yes sir. How is my mom, sir?"

"She's passed away. She was in a roll over accident and suffered life threatening injuries that should of killed her instantly. I'm sorry about your loss." The doctor dug in his pocket and produced a small box. "She wanted me to hand you this."

Michael took the box then smiled at the Doctor. "Thank you sir." After the doctor left he shook his head. "We took personal time off for a box." When he opened it up however, his face dropped in total shock. "This can't be right." He turned the photo over then looked up at John. "We need to get to Texas as soon as we can."


	6. Chapter 6

**Dallas, Texas**

The waiting room was quite expect for the laughter from Angela as Trivette tickled her. Smiling Alex noticed that everybody's life was getting back together. She began to work on small court cases again, Trivette went back to full duty, and Erica did her best to watch over Angela while Alex was away.

Gage stepped into the waiting room smiling. "Angie, does the tickle monster have you?"

Angela squealed. "Uncle Gage, help me!" She laughed out.

Finally Trivette stopped tickling and sat down on the floor. "What's up Gage?"

The young man sighed. "Just working as hard as I can." He blew through his lips as he sat down. "You know the case Syd and I was working on when this happened to Walker." Trivette nodded. "It might be connected."

Quickly Trivette got up. "What do you mean?"

Gage took a deep breath. "One of the suspects talked about how his friend had almost killed a man. The details he was saying no one else will know about." He laced his hands then looked at Alex. She nodded her head knowing what he might say will be hard for her to take. "The guy told me that his friend was going to rape a woman when a officer came in to help. Another man, possibly a partner quickly slipped away, got a rock and threw it at the officer. Then his friend took the rock and began to hit the man repeatedly in the face." He sighed heavily. "That is when the twins took over."

Alex wiped the tears from her eyes. "Walker, didn't even see it coming."

Trivette rubbed the nape of his neck. "Where is this man at right now?"

"Lock-up at the County." He took a deep breath. "He gave us the names of the men in the attack for a lighter sentence. Unfortunately we are unable to get a search warrant until later on tonight."

Erika picked up Angela then went to Alex. "I'm going to take her to the game room in the children's wing. We'll be back in about an hour."

Nodding Alex gave Angela a kiss on the cheek. "You have fun Angie."

Angie smiled. "I always have fun." She blew her mom a kiss. "Love you mommy."

"Love you too." Alex sighed heavily. "Hopefully this man who did this to Walker will get the maximum sentence for attempted murder of an officer."

"I hope so too." Trivette turned to the hall as a doctor came in. "Doctor Miller how's everything going?"

Doctor Miller smiled. "I think everything here on out should be getting better. I believe the last surgery to his jaw was the final one until we removed the wires and the tubes and there is no signs of any more clots in his brain. His strength should be getting stronger from here on out. But I still would like for him to stay at the hospital for at least another month, maybe forty days."

"You mean he can go home in just a month?" She said in bewilderment not believing what she just heard. "A month from now?" She had to repeat it, just to make sure.

"Yes, if everything goes fine he should be able to. Hopefully by then he will also be weaned off the feeding tube or close to it. As well as the trachea tube, which tomorrow I'm going to put in a smaller one and began the first phases of decannulization." He sighed heavily. "But he has been dependent on both for over a month it could be hard to do." He shook his head, amazement on his face. "I believe it's a miracle that he has made it this far."

"Thank you doctor." Alex grinned. "I do believe it is miracle, Doctor Miller. I remember what you told me the first time we came here and I honestly thought Walker was going to die." She began to cry. "And I thank you for keeping him alive."

Doctor Miller seemed humbled. "Thank you." He sighed. "You go and see Walker, he's sort of awake right now. He's doing amazingly well."

Alex shook the older man's hand. "Thank you again, sir."

In Walker's room Alex sat by her husbands bed looking around at the many photos they had put on the walls and tables. She slowly picked one up almost crying when she saw how healthy her husband had looked. The photo was of the whole family and she can tell that Walker loved life just by looking at his eyes.

Glancing at him in the photo, she took a look at him now and Alex can tell that his facial appearances has definitely changed. His face seemed to be thinner now, his cheekbones, even through his swollen cheeks can now be visibly seen. She can tell that he has lost a lot of weight since being admitted by glancing at his arms and chest. There was also his right eye which was a little droopy because of the orbit being shattered. Then of course his nose which remarkably had only changed slightly, but he may have breathing problems that she doesn't know about. It was still rather swollen which left him having the trachea tube still in his throat. She glanced at the photo one more time then placed it down on the table.

She squeezed his hand. "Hey, honey." Walker slowly squeezed her hand. "So, you're awake?"

Walker squeezed her hand again. "Alex..." He grimaced as he mouthed the words, his voice almost nonexistent. "Thirsty." Quickly she got the stick sponge then started to rub it slowly across his lips. Very gradually he raised his hand moaning. As he talked the tube softly hissed, a noise Alex got familiar with over the weeks. "Hurts."

"It's necessary Walker since your lips are so chapped." She then reached for the bigger sponge and soaked it with water. "This is what your really wanting." She squeezed the sponge letting water run into Walker's mouth through his slightly open lips. "Feel good?"

"Yeah." Walker mouthed then swallowed hard. "Thank you."

Alex smiled. "Your welcome honey." She looked at his swollen face. "Doctor Miller told me you can go home in month or so if your strong enough." She glanced down to his abdomen where a bulge in the sheet told her about the feeding tube. Doctor Miller wanted to insert it through his nose, however through surgery and the swelling they had to surgical place it in his abdomen. "You will have to get weaned off the feeding and trachea tube. And if not, you know I'll be able to help you out."

Walker slowly moved his hand to his stomach. "That's…hurt." He mouthed, his voice just a hush. He tried to smile, but it quickly was replaced by a grimace of pain. "When?"

"I believe they are going to start in a couple of days." She patted Walker's shoulder. "I heard some good news." Walker just rolled his eyes over to her. "You should no longer have any more major surgeries."

He squeezed her hand stronger then he has ever before. "That's…" He winced with pain. "Great."

She smiled and gave him a light kiss on the forehead. "I know it is."

Texas was chilly as John and Michael made their way down the highway to Methodist Hospital. Because of traveling through military they managed to get a jeep for transportation. It was a decent vehicle, the only problem was the heater didn't work. This bothered Michael as he sat in the passenger seat rubbing his hands together.

"How much longer?" He said through chattering teeth.

John laughed. "Just down the road here." He pointed to a tall building appearing on the horizon. "See, it's only a few minutes from where we are."

"What do you think they will say about this?"

"I don't know Michael." John turned to his brother shaking his head in disbelief. "Who would have ever thought that the man we saved could be our father."

Michael took out the picture of Ranger Walker. "If you look at this photo he does sort of look like us. But why would he not try to find us? Do you think he knew?"

"I don't know." John parked then leisurely got out. "Let's see what Ranger Walker has to say."

Once inside the hospital John went to the nurses station then asked her where Ranger Walker's room was located. After she told him that he was in the rehabilitation ward the brothers began to make their way down the hall. John's nerves were on high which was unusual for him. He was usually so calm, however right now all he could think about is the possibility that his father was a man who at one time was a complete stranger to him.

Reaching the waiting room John could see two young Rangers sitting in chairs talking to each other. Michael's and his boots echoed down the hall making the two Rangers glance up. Quickly the man, a younger male with dirty blonde hair got up to greet them.

He smiled. "You two must be John Norris and Michael Garrison."

John nodded with a grin of his own. "Yes, sir."

"Let me get Alex and Trivette real quick."

While waiting John took out the picture shaking his head in disbelief, still not able to comprehend the news. He will definitely have to ask to get blood work done to make one hundred percent certain. Taking a deep breath he looked up to see Alex Cahill-Walker and Ranger Trivette coming up to them. Quickly he hid the photo in his uniform's breast pocket then stood at attention, Michael doing the same.

Ranger Trivette smiled. "At ease gentleman." He took a deep breath then shook his head. "I thought you two were in Bosnia and Germany."

Michael cleared his throat. "Family emergency, sir." He took a very deep breath while looking at John. "Sir, we need to tell you something and I prefer that you two were sitting down." When the Ranger and the lady sat down Michael and John pulled chairs in front of them. Michael gestured at John for the picture. "Our fraternal mother passed away and she gave us this." He handed the photo to Ranger Trivette. "That's our father, at least that's what she says."

Alex shook her head in disbelief. "Walker, has no kids. If he did then he surely would of told one of us."

John nodded. "We believe that blood work can help solve this mystery." He turned to Ranger Trivette. "That is if we can get permission..."

"I'll get Doctor Miller and see what he can do." Trivette rubbed the nape of his neck. "I know you two look like him, but it isn't like Walker to not help out with something this big."

"Jimmy's right." Alex slowly stood up and took a deep breath. "Would you like to see him? It's still visiting hours."

"Yes, ma'am." John said getting up and following her down a hall.

As they stepped into the room John couldn't help but to see a big difference in the room itself from their last visit. It was decorated with colored pictures, cards, and a couple of photos which adorned the walls and tables. Looking at the bed John's breath caught in his throat when he saw how well the man appeared. Even though the man's face was still swollen he can now see that the many surgeries had indeed done their job . John still can remember very vividly the first time he saw Walker and shook his head in disbelief. Who would have ever thought this man would live and actually look rather normal after the vicious blows to his head.

Ranger Walker's eyes slowly opened. "Who..." He grimaced in pain. "Who…you two?" His voice was just a hush, almost as though he was just mouthing the words and John couldn't quite understand him.

Trivette patted Walker's shoulder. "These are the men who saved you."

Walker's eyes looked the two young men up and down then mouthed, "Marines?"

Alex grinned from ear to ear. "Yes, honey they are." She squeezed his hand then turned to Trivette. "Well, long term memory hasn't been lost."

"Yeah." He smiled then turned to the young men while patting Walker's leg. "You know about Walker's history as a Marine?"

Michael nodded. "Yes, sir. His like a legend in the Corp."

Just then Doctor Miller came walking in smiling. "Well, Walker good to see you awake." He turned to the young men and his smile grew bigger. "You two must be the gentleman that saved his life."

John was humbled. "All in the line of duty. sir."

Taking a deep breath Trivette motioned for Doctor Miller to go to the hall along with the young men. Once out there he took a very deep breath then turned to Walker's room.

"These men, Doctor Miller think that Walker is their father. Is there anyway we can get blood work?"

Doctor Miller nodded his head a little confused. "Sure, but we won't get the results back probably until another day or so."

"Okay." Trivette bit his lower lip not really wanting to evade Walker's privacy, but knew he had no choice. "Doctor, you think I should tell Walker?"

"His body is still in recovery mode. I honestly don't know how well he will take this news." Doctor Miller looked at Walker then back at the men. "I prefer that you wait till he is stronger."


	7. Chapter 7

**Three Days Later**

Alex sat at Walker's bedside, Doctor Miller's words still echoing in her ears after the surprising news. The blood results came back and the twins were indeed Walker's children. But why did he hide it from her, especially after having a daughter themselves? Did he even know about these twins and does he remember the women that he fell in love with? She knew that it took a lot for him to show the strong emotion known as love. What made the twins' mother so special?

She took hold of his hand and gently squeezed it. "Honey, are you awake?"

Walker slowly opened his eyes and mouthed, "Yeah." He took a deep breath through the trachea tube. "Feel better."

"I bet you do. You haven't had a seizure in almost five days." She rubbed his shaved head, smiling as she did. "It's going to take awhile for the hair to grow back out."

Slowly Walker reached his hand up and rubbed his head slightly. Just the gesture alone almost made Alex tear up, it has been awhile since Walker moved like this on his own. She patted his hand then smiled when he rubbed his head again.

Walker placed his hand down as his face turned into something Alex could only know, it was dinner time. Because of the tube he smelled nothing which made food taste rather bland. He couldn't really eat or swallow a lot since he may choke. So, Doctor Miller decided to try to give Walker soup. It was touch and go, but thanks to the smaller tube Walker was able to swallow, though it proved to be rather tough to do.

She turned around as Robert came walking in with a bowl of soup. "You really hate this don't you Walker?" Walker slightly nodded. "Well, if you want the tube out you will learn how to eat again." Robert sat the bowl down onto the bed tray then sat down himself. "All right we're going to go slow this time."

Alex watched helplessly as Walker slowly sipped the soup grimacing when the hot liquid touched the inside of his mouth and the stitches inside. This one tough man now can barely take down soup without the slightest hint of pain. Walker reached up towards the spoon then pushed Robert's hand away.

Robert shook his head. "You need to try Walker."

Walker took a look at Alex then back at the spoon. He mouthed, "I…try."

Shocked Robert put the spoon back in the bowl then slowly got up. "All right let me get something that will help you out just a little."

When Robert was gone Alex turned to Walker a little worried. "Are you sure it's not too soon? I mean you're just now moving your arms more."

"Yeah." Walker glanced up as Robert came walking into the room. "What…"

"Put it bluntly it's a spoon holder." Robert put the odd looking Velcro device on Walker's hand then he put the spoon through the plastic hole. "Alright, this should be able to keep the utensil steady while you eat."

Nodding Walker ever so slowly began to eat on his own which made Alex cry with pride. He was finally getting back to doing things on his own. Hopefully he will soon start talking more or better yet start walking. It's been close to two months since Walker has actually moved his legs freely. She began to worry thinking that he might be paralyzed. Why didn't she think of it before? Why hasn't Robert encouraged Walker to move his legs or even walk?

"Alex, you okay?" Came Robert's assuring voice.

She realized she was still crying and wiped her face. "Yeah, just happy to see him eating on his own." She took a deep breath. "What about his legs?" She said, her voice nearly catching in her throat.

Robert took a deep breath. "We can try." He patted Walker's shoulder. "What do you think? You ready to do exercises on your legs?"

Walker nodded as he very slowly sipped on the soup. "Yeah." He grimaced and placed his hand down. "No…more."

"You did good." Robert undid the strap then patted Walker's hand. "Unfortunately you might have to stay here for just a little longer."

"Why?" Walker shook his head. "Go…home." He mouthed through pain. "Doctor..." He took a deep breath through the tube. "...go home."

Alex couldn't help to smile brilliantly. "He's back."

**Two Weeks Later**

Most of what had happened to Walker, went by in a big blur, the days running into one another in one jumbled mess. All he could think about was the pain that seemed to never go away. But the thought of him going home very soon made him that much stronger. He swallowed hard, his throat just a little sore. The tube was removed just a few days ago which made him rather happy. He could now smell again, which he hasn't been able to do for quite some time.

A gentle hand fell upon his which he knew right away was Alex's. He rolled his head to the right then gradually opened his eyes. "Alex." His voice was really raspy and low, but by the look in her eyes he could tell she heard. "Where's Angela?"

"She's with Erica." Alex patted his hand. "How you feeling today?"

Slowly and gently he placed his left hand on the hole in his neck which was hidden behind a thick piece of gauze and tape. He was told to do this by Doctor Miller to help get his voice louder.. "Better." Though raspy he was shocked at how weak his voice sounded. However when he glanced at Alex he could see tears. "Everything okay?"

"It's just been so long since I heard your voice." She gave him a kiss on the forehead as Robert came walking in with a smile on his face. In his hands a tray with a small bowl of soup and Jell-O. "Glad to hear Doctor Miller removed the feeding tube yesterday. Now we can start on solids or close to solids." He placed the tray onto the bed table then sat down across from Alex. "How are you breathing today?"

Walker nodded his head. "Doing good." He reached out to pick up the spoon, happy that he could at least do that simple task. Now, comes the challenge of actually eating the soup. Very slowly he lifted the spoon to his chapped lips and took a sip. The warm liquid scolded the inside of his mouth which made him grimace loudly. "Can't wait till…" He had to stop as pain enveloped his jaw. He lowered the spoon then rested his head on the pillow. "No more."

"You need to eat, Walker." Robert took the spoon from him and shook his head. "I know it's painful, it's going to be for the next month till they remove most of the wiring."

It frustrated Walker to no end on his weakness and how he couldn't do the simplest of things. He closed his eyes as Robert ever so slowly fed him the soup and though it stung the inside of his mouth, being able to smell the chicken broth did get his stomach to growl. It's been so long since he was able to smell anything and just the simple act of smelling did help him push the pain back. After he was finished with the soup he took a deep breath, savoring the fruity smell of Jell-O. He never would have thought the scent of Jell-O would make him so happy.

"Now, it's been awhile since you had anything else besides water and soup." Robert smiled as he fed Walker the Jell-O. The sweet, cool texture a very welcome relief to Walker's sore and swollen mouth. However when it touched a few cracked molars he had to wince at the slight pain it caused. "Some of your teeth will be super sensitive. Other then that, how does it feel?"

Walker would smile if he did. "Much better." Drowsiness began to play with his mind as the morphine drip kicked in. "Getting tired."

Robert patted Alex's hand as Walker fell into a deep sleep. "He's going to be just fine."

"When do you think I should tell him about John and Michael? He needs to know."

"He's very strong now, just in a lot of pain. Any day can work." Robert shrugged. "Should do it soon, the twins need to get back to full duty."


	8. Chapter 8

The taekwondo school, though small was perfect for John who wanted to teach his brother a few things about the sport that he loved. At a young age he got involved in taekwondo, a way for his adopted parents to make sure he didn't end up like a stereotypical foster kid. He had taken to it quite well and would have trained for the Olympics had he not joined the Marines.

He patted Michael's back then sat down on a plastic chair that sat right by the door. "Owner said we can have two hours of dojo time."

"Two hours?" Michael shook his head with a laugh. "I hope I last."

"You're a Marine sniper, I think you can actually kick my butt out there." Once his shoes and socks were off he made his way across the mats till he got to the middle of the floor. "Just going to run you through some simple drills."

A student from the school walked up to them with a smile on his face. "Nice to have you here. I'll be working in the office, filling out paper work and such. If you have any questions don't be afraid to ask. Take it easy and most of all have fun."

Michael grinned at the man. "Thank you, sir." He was just about to began stretching when his cell phone began to buzz. He quickly jumped up, picked it off the chair then flipped it open. "Hello. Oh, hey Ranger Trivette, how is everything today?"

"Doing rather well. Walker is talking a lot more now." Michael could since the older man hesitating. "It's about time we tell him the news."

"Understandable." He glanced over to John to see his brother stretching. "We'll be right over there…"

"Take your time. He's sleeping right now. Usually he's out for three hours." Trivette took a deep breath. "The men that attacked him got out of jail today. Apparently there wasn't enough evidence to keep them in."

Michael began to pace, shaking his head as he did. "The man that actually beat Walker, he got off too?"

"Yep, apparently his bond got paid. All one hundred thousand dollars of it." Trivette sighed heavily. "Anyway, just wanted to let you know what's happening. Talk to you when you get to the hospital."

"All right, will do." Michael closed the cell phone then shook his head. "The men who attacked Walker got off. One, his bond got paid for and the others, not enough evidence." He turned to his brother to see his shocked look. "Yeah, good news, Walker is doing much better, in fact he's talking. Trivette says it's time to tell him about you and me."

John slowly stood up and began to rotate his shoulders. "What do you think he'll say about us?"

Michael shook his head. "Honestly, I have no idea. Are you nervous?"

"Hell ya!" John stopped his stretches to get a good look at his twin brother. "Once we do, our lives may never be the same again."

"John, when we walked into that alley and saved Walker's life that night, our lives had already changed." Michael went to the chair and sat down with a sigh. "I hope he can remember our mother. With the head injury he suffered, who knows. I know it's asking a lot, but I want him to tell us why he didn't stay with our mother, why he left her pregnant with twins." Michael rubbed his face then glanced up at John. "Is that too much to ask?"

"I think it's the perfect question to ask." John smiled. "Come on, let's work out a little bit. It'll help with the anxiety."

A hand patting him on the shoulder awoke him from light nap and as Walker opened his eyes he saw Gage and Sydney standing by his bed. It's been awhile since he has seen them and would have smiled if he could. Alex did tell him they visited him, unfortunately they tend to catch him while he was going into surgery or in a deep sleep. He raised his hand which Gage took into his, clasping it firmly.

"It's been awhile, boss." Gage shrugged as he sat down on a chair next to Walker's bed. "Always tend to come and visit you when you're either asleep or going into surgery." He patted Walker's hand as he beamed that smile of his. "Hear your finally sitting up and eating."

"All I need to do now is start walking." Walker glanced behind them to make sure Alex wasn't in the room before he asked his question. "What's going on guys?"

Gage appeared genuinely confused. "What do you mean?"

Walker sighed heavily, coughing as the air caught in his throat. "Jimmy and Alex, they've been acting weird. Do I look that bad?" He chuckled, wishing he could smile. When would he be able to even move his mouth without pain? "Don't try to lie to me."

This got a laugh from Sydney. "That's the Walker that I've been hoping to see." She patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about Alex. She's stressed out right now. She'll be fine. As for Trivette," She sighed heavily as her eyes went to look at Gage. "He's busy with a case."

"It's the guys who did this to me, right?" His voice was getting raspier the more he spoke. "Thought they were in jail?"

"They were." Gage glanced backwards as Robert came walking into the room with a white strap in his hands. "Couldn't hold them though, sorry Walker."

"I doesn't help that I can't remember the attack." His voice was weak as he began to lightly shake his head as dizziness began to take over his mind which soon turned into slight nausea. He began to get some numbness in his limbs as his mind began to fade off.

Gage took a step back as he watched on as Walker began to twitch his limbs as he let out a few grunts. He assumed when people had seizures they would just flop around, their arms flailing all over the place. What he saw in front of him was much calmer, though still terrifying too watch. Walker's eyes had rolled back into his head, showing only the whites. He turned to Syd to see her covering her mouth in horror while Robert checked Walker's vitals.

"Don't worry, he's doing good. Heart rate is a little high, but that tends to happen during a seizure." He smiled as Walker's body began to visibly relax, the twitching and grunting coming only in sporadic intervals. As his eyes began to flutter, Robert patted Walker's shoulder. "And here I was wanting you to start moving today."

"Is this going to be recurring?" Gage could barely get his voice out as he watched his dear friend roll his eyes around as though he was really confused at what just happened.

Robert shrugged. "His brain suffered severe damage during the attack." He grabbed a small cup from the side table. "Usually, in head traumas like his, the seizures only last a year or so while the brain is still in healing mode. When he is released from here he will have to keep a log." He gently smiled at Walker, held the cup to his chapped lips then slowly tipped it. "Slow sips, Walker."

Doctor Miller walked in, instantly going to Walker's chart at the foot of the bed. "Robert, did he just have a seizure?"

"Yeah." He pulled the cup away from Walker's lips then grabbed the chart. "Sorry, Gage and Sydney, looks like he's going to be sleeping again during your visit."

Sydney slowly nodded her head. "It's okay." She glanced down to see Walker looking up at them. "How you feeling?"

Walker swallowed hard as he closed his eyes. "Sorry." His voice was rather weak as he fought off sleep. "Sorry."

Gage smiled down at his dear friend. "Don't you worry, boss." He patted Walker's shoulder. "Just get some sleep now."

Later that night John and Michael made their way down the hall, both of them slightly shaking from what they were about to do. They rounded a corner and headed towards the waiting room where they were to meet Mrs. Cahill-Walker. As they approached she was talking with two young Rangers who looked at them in complete shock. Both of the twins quickly came to a realization their appearances will get them stares when in Texas.

John stepped up to Mrs. Cahill-Walker as she stood up from her chair. "Ma'am, how are you today?"

"I'm doing rather good." She sighed heavily as she smiled at them. "He's awake right now, come follow me. He may be weak, he began to do physical therapy a few hours ago."

Michael slowly nodded. "Understandable."

Walker couldn't believe how tired he had become just by taking three very short steps. It was going to take some time for him to get back into the physical shape he once was in. He laid on his hospital bed, his arms crossed over his chest as the heart monitor beeped next to him. His mouth ached so badly he wondered if the pain would ever go away. He gently touched his cheek surprised he could actually feel the wire work. He had become so thin while in the hospital, Doctor Miller estimated he lost about twenty pounds and most of his muscle tone. Which meant he will have hours of physical therapy ahead of him once he lives here.

His door slowly opened and in walked Alex with the twins right behind her. She whispered something to them, smiled then left the room. That was odd, why would she leave the room? Maybe the twins wanted to see him alone, which was weird, but definitely not something he should worry about.

"Hello, Mr. Walker good to see you awake, sir." The twin with the stockier build sat down next to his bed. "My name is John and this is Michael."

Michael waved and sat down by his brother. "Hey there, Mr. Walker."

"It's good to see you here." Walker would love to have smiled to the young men, but found moving his mouth just the slightest hurt. "How is everything?"

John took a deep breath. "Going good, sir." He laced his hands, his demeanor showing Walker he was hiding something rather important. "I don't know how to say this, but I'm just going to be blunt." He rubbed his face obviously nervous about something. "Our mother passed away and she gave us this picture." He pulled out a small picture from his shirt pocket. "It's you."

Walker took the picture from John, his eyes getting wide as he saw himself as a young Ranger. His breath caught in his throat as he turned the picture around to read the writing on the back. Ever since he had become more aware he realized words jumbled together. And this time was no different. He really needed to bring that up with Doctor Miller, but his stubborn pride made it difficult to do so. He didn't want to look weaker then he already was.

"It's me, back in the mid-eighties." He glanced up at the men, realization suddenly hitting him hard. These men looked just like him when he was younger, so much so he they could only be his sons. "No, that can't be." His voice was just a whisper. "But, it was a one time thing…"

"Tests proved positive, we're your sons." John smiled and patted Walker's hand. "Listen, we don't fault you one bit. You didn't know."

Walker's heart began to race, his mind a jumbled mess of emotions. How could he have sons? Why didn't Ellen tell him? How could she have hidden it from him? How could he have been so stupid? What drove him to make such a mistake? His male ego, that had to have been it. After all he was the youngest Ranger to ever make the forces in quite some time, unfortunately that boosted his pride just a little too much. He had learned a lesson that day, however these men next to him showed that he had made a huge mistake. How was he suppose to make up for this?

Doctor Miller stepped in rather worried. "Walker, you're high rate is rather high. If you don't calm down you might suffer another seizure." He saw the twins, a look of understanding sweeping across his face. "Just try to relax, Walker. I'll be back in thirty to check on you."

After Doctor Miller left Walker grabbed John's hand. "I'm so sorry. If I had known, I would have been there," He took a deep breath as it became harder for him talk. "I'll try my best to be there for you two, from now on." He then took hold of Michael's hand and squeezed it tightly as he began to get really drowsy. "Again, I'm sorry."

Michael watched Walker fall sleep then turned to John. "You know, it could be nice to have a father. We now have an excuse to use up those holiday leaves." He patted Walker's hand. "We'll have to try and make it for Christmas." He smiled. "God is sure amazing to bring us together like this."


	9. Chapter 9

**One Month Later**

Though chilly Walker was very grateful to be sitting on the porch of his ranch, looking out at the frost covered fields. He was released from the hospital just yesterday, with strict instructions of what to do and what not to do. On top of that he was forced to take reading classes which was highly embarrassing, especially since his young daughter corrected his mistakes. Hopefully things will click inside his brain and he would be able to read normally once again.

Scooter let out a loud yawn from where he sat by Walker's feet then shifted his weight till he rested his head onto Walker's boots. The young lab mix hadn't really left his side since he came home early yesterday afternoon and it was rather comforting to have the dog by his side. He pulled the fleece blanket tighter to his body, as a slight wind began to pick up. With the breeze came the smells he thought he would never get to smell again. Scents of grass, hay, and the brisk, sweet aroma of winter.

"Hey honey, you should be getting inside." Alex came walking out with a smile. "I'm glad you're home in time for Christmas." She rubbed his shoulders then kissed him on the head. "How's the jaw feeling today?"

Walker gently touched his cheek, frustrated to feel the wires still inside his mouth. "Doing better, just can't wait till I can get the wires off."

He took the large water thermos from his wife grateful that she brought it out with her. Nice cool water helped soothe the deep, throbbing pain in his mouth. He took a few sips then glanced at the pasture, quite accustomed to having blurred vision out of his right eye. Apparently during the attack a nerve was severely damaged in his eye and he may never recover proper vision. With his eyesight the way it was and the possibility that he may have reoccurring seizures left him thinking about early retirement.

Alex patted his arm. "Come on, let's get inside. The wind is picking up."

Walker handed her the thermos then ever so slowly stood to his feet, his legs straining from the effort. He took hold of her extended hand then began to shuffle towards the front door. He learned quickly on into his recovery that he had to swallow his pride and ask for help when he needed it even though it embarrassed him to no end to show so much weakness.

As he finally got into the house his daughter ran up to him with a big smile. "Daddy!"

"Hey, Angela!" He rubbed her curly hair then wearily sat down on the sofa. "Come here and sit by daddy."

"Hang on!" Angela went running into the kitchen with Alex following her. Walker slowly closed his eyes then opened them back up when he felt his daughter sitting on his lap. "Here, daddy! I have your dinner!"

He gave her a slight smile as he took the can of Ensure from her. "Thanks sweetie."

Alex patted her husband's shoulder as she took the can from his hands. She popped the top, put in a straw then handed it back to him. Since he came home he mostly just had Ensure along with baby food, yogurt without fruit and puréed foods. It will be his diet for a few more weeks till his jaw healed enough for the wires to come out. Because of that he wasn't gaining any weight and in fact lost five more pounds in the last month. He had to actually go shopping last night for new clothes just so he had something to wear once he left the hospital.

"Hey daddy, you want to read a book together?" Angela jumped down and grabbed one of her books from a basket by the couch. "It's Veggie Tales!"

As Angela jumped onto Walker's lap, Alex sat down next to her husband as he flipped open the book. It pained her to see him not able to read a simple children's book and she prayed every night that it will get better. Doctor Miller told her it was because of his brain damage and it may get better in time. His brain after all was still in healing mode.

She turned to Walker to see the confused look on his face. "What do you need help with?"

Walker blushed as he pointed to the page in front of him. "The words are all jumbled together. Though I can read a few, which is improvement." His voice was slightly mumbled from the wires, which made understanding him a little difficult. Alex leaned in close so she can see the page that he was having problems with. "This is so embarrassing."

"Honey, you suffered a head injury that would have killed most people." She kissed his shaved head. "It'll come back to you, you'll see."

He slowly nodded. "I know." He began to drink the Ensure through the straw, longing for the day when he could eat like a normal human being once again. He got a glance at the time and patted his daughter on her back. "Why don't you have mommy give you a bath? You got an early morning tomorrow."

Angela beamed. "Christmas!" She gave Walker a big hug. "Will John and Mike come and visit?"

Walker shook his head. "No, unfortunately not." He rubbed his daughter's hair. "They'll visit in a few months though, on their next leave." He smiled as best he could at her. "But they did send you a few presents." This got his daughter to beam which made him laugh.

"Come on, daddy needs to rest." Alex picked up their daughter then smiled down at him. "Don't forget to take your medication."

He smiled back at her. "I won't."


	10. Chapter 10

Walker slowly stood up and ever so gradually made his way to the kitchen where on the counter sat several bottles of his medication. Next to the bottles sat a packet where he jotted down his food, liquid and medication for the day, a way for him to keep track of everything he had to do. He wrote down the Ensure then began to get his medication read which meant crushing the pills and throwing them in water. He didn't want to take the pills, but if he didn't he would have one miserable night. As of late, he didn't get much sleep which meant a seizure could happen any hour or day.

After he took his medication he made his way to the downstairs bathroom where he rinsed his mouth with a dental hygienic rinse. He had to do this after he had anything to eat other then water. Once that was done he opened his mouth slightly to see the many wires that held his jaw together. He had his jaw wired once before, but nothing like this. It appeared this time his entire jaw was held inside a cage of sorts. He could barely see where he was missing three front teeth and knew that he was missing two molars as well. Not only was he missing teeth, but inside his mouth were several cracked ones which left him in pain nearly all the time, especially when he drank.

He studied himself in the mirror, ashamed at what he saw. His head was still shaved showing him the many scars from the attack, one tracing across his entire hairline from the brain surgery to remove blood clots. It was hard for him to imagine that he had someone operating on his brain just a few months ago. Then there was his right eye which slightly drooped, another reminder of the attack. He traced the scar on his left cheek which hampered with his beard growth. No hair grew on that part of his face which meant he could never hide it.

He took a deep breath then gently rubbed his thin face. "It's going to take awhile for me to get back into shape."

His eyes dropped from the mirror at the sound of his slurred voice. He caught a glance at the deep indention in his throat where the trachea tube sat for nearly two months. It was just beginning to heal over, however the area was still slightly sensitive and the skin rather thin. When not at home, he wore a thick bandage to prevent any injury.

Tomorrow will be the first day he will see many of the Rangers he worked with for the first time since his attack. What would they say about his appearance? He knew exactly what they would say, but they could be lying. He didn't look well at all, in fact he looked deathly ill. Why couldn't he put weight on? What was his problem?

Very slowly he lifted his shirt to see the scars on his chest, stomach and side, but what worried him the most was his visible ribs. It looked as though he was starving himself. He quickly pulled his shirt down as Alex's soft steps made their way towards the bathroom.

"Hey sweetie, everything going okay?" She gave him a hug then kissed him on the cheek.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He turned around to give her a hug back. "I'm going to get to bed. I need to get some sleep. I'll see ya in a little bit."

As Alex watched her husband walk off she couldn't help but to worry about Walker. Ever since he came home his attitude went up and it went crashing down. She believed it was his return to reality that really got to him. Hopefully with the help of his occupational therapist, Terry Mist he will be able to get back into the swing of things. She really missed the old Walker.

_It seemed odd to him that Ellen would leave for five months to visit her sister, especially since he didn't even know she even had a sister in Kentucky. He sat in his truck thinking over and over again of that night and wondered if he had made a mistake. It seemed that he had since just a month later Ellen began to act strangely. What if she was trying to hide a pregnancy? If she was, why? He would be there for their child, if they ever had one together. Was she scared?_

_And today she wanted to tell him something important. She had been in town now for roughly a month, however they barely saw each other. He glanced at the instructions yet again wondering why she wanted to meet at this location, it seemed a little out of place. He placed the paper down on the passenger seat as he pulled up next to her car. _

_He took a deep breath then slowly got out of the truck, his hand slipping inside his coat pocket. There he fingered the engagement ring wondering when he should pop the question. Maybe it would be here, in this beautiful field, surrounded by nature._

"_Cordell, hey!" Ellen came running towards him. "What are you doing here?"_

"_I thought you called me here." Walker's instincts kicked into high gear as the hair on his neck stood up. "What did you want to talk to me about?"_

_Nothing. Everything suddenly turned black and all he could see in front of him were soft glowing images. What had happened? Was he dead? He glanced around him to only see more blackness. Where did Ellen go? She was right there, right in front of him. What was she going to say to him? _

A soft mumble awoke Alex from a light sleep and it took her tired brain a few minutes to figure out where it was coming from. Very gradually she rolled over to see Walker laying on his back, his arms crossed over his chest. She could barely see his lips moving as he talked about something in his sleep. Ever since the twins told him they were his sons, he hasn't really gotten a good nights sleep. Because of this, his seizures, which appeared to be triggered by stress or sleep deprivation, have occurred more often then they should.

She rubbed his arm which startled him awake. "Honey, you're having a nightmare."

He blinked several times then slowly rubbed his face. "I've been getting a lot of those lately." He swung his legs over the side of the bed, his shoulders slumping. "Alex, the twins' mother is Ellen. But they said their mother passed away and that's how they found me." His voice was rather low. "However, there's no way of really proving Ellen…." His voice faded off as he slowly turned to her. "There is a way. I just need to call up…"

"Honey, you need to relax." She rubbed his back, hoping to calm him down. "Doctor Miller said if you had problems sleeping to take the medication he prescribed."

"I'm fine." He smiled as he slowly stood up. "I'll take a nap later today."


	11. Chapter 11

**Christmas Day**

Later the next day Walker sat in the passenger seat of his truck, rather tired and ready to doze off. He had a good two hour nap after the present opening earlier this morning, unfortunately he was still tired. He couldn't believe how tired he always was and wondered if it was something to worry about it. Maybe not, he was after all in a deep coma for some time and just came home from the hospital not too many days ago. Things will get better, he just had to be patient.

"Honey, wake up. We're at C.D.'s."

He took a deep breath then pulled his head up to see that they had indeed parked in the lot next to the bar. When did he fall asleep? Alex smiled at him then leaned over to gently clean the drool from his chin. Embarrassed he took the towel from her hands to finish the job. Because of the wires, his mouth was always slightly open which meant he constantly drooled, especially when asleep. It was humiliating.

He shoved the towel in his back pocket then opened the door, the cold Texas wind hitting him in the face. He slightly shivered then pulled his coat tighter to his body. It hasn't gotten this cold in Dallas in awhile, just wish it snowed so he could see a white Christmas, a rarity in the south.

"Let's go daddy!" Angela tugged at his coat sleeve as she ran towards the front entrance. "Everybody is waiting!"

Inside the busy bar, Clyde Brookdale sipped at his beer, his accomplice sitting right across from him. It was rather risky for both of them to be here, but he just had to see the Ranger himself. Last time he had seen Ranger Walker was when he was taking a rock and bashing his skull in. He had heard in the news that he had done some damage and should have been put in jail, but thanks to Vinnie Marcellinio, his employer he was out on bond.

"We shouldn't be here. There's cops everywhere." Hissed Johnny Harris as he shakily put a beer to his lips. "What if one of those Marines come back? I'm still hurting when I got…"

"They won't be here tonight." He glanced over his shoulder as the door opened and in walked Ranger Walker. He almost smiled at how sickly the man really looked. Walker was skinny, barely could walk and had a shaved head which showed off several scars. He shook his head as he sipped at his beer. "Those stupid Marines, if they didn't get in my way Walker would be dead or still in a coma."

Johnny hid his face with his menu. "You know this is a function for only family and friends. Somebody _will _see us here."

"I know. We're leaving, just wanted to see him in person." He took out his wallet, threw out two twenties then stood up. "I got my bond paid for for a reason, J. I've been assigned by Vinnie to finish my job." He chugged down the last of his beer, wiped his mouth then patted Johnny on the shoulder. "Five hundred thousand dollars, my friend. Five hundred thousand."

"Yeah, that will help out quite a bit. Hopefully you have a plan." His voice faded off as they headed straight towards the Walkers. "This is suicide." He hissed.

Clyde raised his hand to silence Johnny then gently bummed into Walker which nearly made the once strong man fall into his wife. "Excuse me, I'm sorry."

Walker smiled as best he could. "It's okay." He glanced behind him to see the men leaving together. "Let's go find a place to sit down."

Once seated he placed his shake and water thermos on the table then helped Angela into the booth. Trivette spotted him and made a bee line straight towards him, a few glasses of eggnog in his hands. He handed Walker a glass then sat down next to Alex.

"Merry Christmas! Non-Alcoholic eggnog for Walker." He toasted his glass then shouted at Gage and Sydney. "Merry Christmas, guys!"

Gage motioned for Walker to scoot to the wall then sat down heavily. "Glad you're with us Walker for the holidays!" His voice faded as he heard a glass drop then turned towards his friend as Angela began to pull on his shirt. "Walker, are you okay?"

"Get him down on the floor!" Trivette quickly got up and with Gage's help they laid Walker on the tile. By this time Walker's limbs began to spasm ever so slightly, which brought attention to him. "He's okay. Just get back to what you all are doing."

Alex quickly made her way to Walker's head where she cradled it in her lap. "Hang in there Walker, it'll be over shortly." It always tore at her heart when he suffered a seizure, it was just so hard to watch her husband shake and grunt like this. "It's okay, just a little longer."

Walker's whole body tensed up as his limbs locked and his hands began to flex. Trivette kept time on his wrist watch as Gage got Walker's water thermos from the table. Most the time after a seizure Walker would have a brief moment of clarity, ask for water then he would fall into a deep sleep. It's a shame this had to happen now.

Trivette shook his head. "This is the longest one yet." He sighed in relief as Walker visibly relaxed. "I wish he didn't suffer these type of seizures. Why couldn't he have the ones where he spaces out or a limb tenses up?" He glanced up at Gage who had sat next to Walker's head. "Is he awake?"

Gage shook his head. "He's asleep. Help me get him into the booth."

His head ached as he came to which was usually a sign that he had a seizure. As he gradually opened his eyes he wasn't quite sure where he was at and it took him several minutes to finally focus on his surroundings. He was laying in a booth, on his back with his right arm over his face. All around him he heard laughter and voices, but one in particular stood out.

"You're finally awake." It was Alex, she was sitting on the ground next to his head. She rubbed the fuzz on his temple with a smile. "You've been out for nearly two hours."

Very slowly he sat up, grabbing his head as he did. "Where is everybody?"

She got up then sat down next to him in the booth. "Gage and Trivette are drinking it up at the at bar. As for Sydney, she and Erica are chatting it up, Angela, she's asleep in the booth next to you."

He glanced over to see his daughter sound asleep with a jacket over her. His poor daughter, wonder what she thought about his seizures. Wonder what everybody thought about them? It was definitely something new to deal with on a daily basis, but at least he was alive. At least he will see his daughter graduate high school, college, then hopefully walk her down the aisle. Just the latter nearly brought a tear to his eyes.

"Hey, you're awake!" Trivette came walking up to him with a glass of eggnog. "Since you spilt your other one."

"I did?" Walker took the glass from Trivette then slowly took a sip, the flavor a welcome taste after all the shakes and blended foods. He raised the glass high into the air. "To the future." He began to laugh at the corniness of what he just said and so did Trivette.

"You were never good with words." Trivette chuckled as he gave Walker a huge hug. "Glad to have you here. Don't give us a scare like that again."


	12. Chapter 12

**Three Months Later**

As he stepped into Doctor Hayden's office Walker was led to a bed where he sat down. Hayden was a specialist in head trauma and specifically worked with patients who had lasting effects. In Walker's case it was the seizures, difficulty reading and something new he found out about once he got healthy enough to work out. He had problems with hand eye coordination, which was crucial in martial arts. Hopefully Doctor Hayden could help him out.

"Hello, Mr. Walker." Hayden closed the door behind him then opened a folder. "Got your CAT scans back today." He stuck them in a light box then turned it on. "How are you feeling today?"

Walker could sense that Doctor Hayden was hiding something from him. "What's going on?"

"The part of your skull that took the hardest hit was the back." He pointed to a brain scan which didn't look right to Walker. It had a very small spot near the back, which Hayden pointed to with a pen. "This, is the damaged part of your brain, unfortunately the brain does not heal. With physical and occupational therapy you should be able to continue living a great life."

"I see." Walker's shoulders slightly slumped. "This is my life now, huh?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Doctor Hayden sat down on a stool with a smile. "But you're alive." He opened the folder and began to jot down notes. "How are the seizures?"

Walker nodded. "Doing good. I'm beginning to know when they're about to happen. It usually starts with some dizziness, then nausea and my arms began to get a tingle sensation. Thanks to the medication, I'm able to control it, for the most part." He handed Hayden the journal where he logged all the seizures he had since he left the hospital. "Do you think they'll stop?"

Hayden sighed heavily as he glanced through the journal. "They could, we will keep a really close eye and this here," He held up the journal. "Is a very good idea." He took a deep breath as he rolled over to the counter. "How is the physical and occupational therapy coming along?"

"Doing really good. My reading has improved. But, my hand eye coordination isn't what it use to be." He glanced down at his clasped hands. "Doc, I'll do anything to get back to how I was before the attack."

"Walker, I'm not going to lie to you, you may never get back to exactly how you use to be. Your brain suffered serious trauma." Hayden paused then closed the folder. "It's amazing that you have made it this far. I have seen the scans and x-rays from when you were admitted, with the type of injuries you suffered I usually see patients walking in here in far worse condition then what you are now." Hayden took a deep breath. "You're one of the lucky ones."

Walker slowly nodded his head. "What should I do now?"

"Keep doing what your doing." He scooted his stool till he sat directly in front of Walker. "Okay, I'm going to test your reflexes." He took out a small flashlight from his lab coat and shown it directly into Walker's weakened right eye. "How are you dealing with the lack of depth perception?"

"It's doing good. I see a little out of the eye, so that helps some." Walker followed the light as Hayden waved it front of him. "Just something else that I've been learning to deal with."

Hayden smiled. "You'll learn how to do things slightly different, Walker. Many patients do." He nodded his head, jotted down some notes in the folder then held out one finger. "Follow my finger and then point to it." Walker did as he was told, but found it difficult to point at the finger while it was moving. "I'm going to give you simple exercises to do at home." He took out a piece of paper from the folder and began to go over what Walker had to do.

In the waiting room John sat reading a Time's magazine while Walker had his weekly checkup with Doctor Hayden. After this he will take Walker to the dentist where he will have another surgery on his mouth, this time to fix a cracked molar. Since John's arrival back to Dallas a month ago, Walker has had ten surgeries to fix his teeth. Unfortunately he had three more surgeries to go; one root canal and two more broken teeth that needed to be taken care of.

He yawned then stretched, wincing as the sore muscles in his chest began to pull. Three months ago he and Michael were sent to Iraq, one of the reasons why they couldn't get away for Christmas. It was a month ago today when John got involved in a shoot out which left him fighting for his life. He was just released from the hospital close to a month ago, unfortunately thanks to some \nerve damage in his right arm he may never be a Marine again. However, his mood was not dampened. Once he was healthy enough he would began training once again for the Olympics.

"You ready to go?"

He glanced up to see Walker standing in front of him, in his hands an envelope. "Yeah, how did everything go?"

Walker shrugged. "Doing okay. Thanks for taking me to all these appointments. Really appreciate it. Lunch is on me."

John patted Walker's shoulder. "Deal. Don't forget though, you have oral surgery in an hour."

"Don't remind me." Walker grimaced at just the thought of another surgery on his mouth. The worst surgery he has had was to get metallic implants put into his gums so he could place false teeth over them. As for the missing molars, he had a retainer with two false teeth on it which took some time to get use to it. "Where do you want to eat?"

"Mexican sounds good." His phone buzzed in his pocket. Quickly he fished it out to see it was for Walker. "It's your friend, Chip Henderson."

Walker quickly took the phone from John then pushed the green button. "Hey Chip, thanks so much for doing that project for me. Did you find the evidence?"

Chip sighed heavily. "Yes, I did. Her blood was still frozen, which I'm amazed to find since the case was closed." Walker could hear wheels sliding across linoleum as Chip went to another station. "According to the blood work, twins are related to Ellen, she's their mother."

"Thank you." Walker sighed with relief then sat down on a chair. "I really appreciate you doing this for me Chip."

"No problem, sorry that it took awhile."

"Oh, that's no problem." He said good-bye then glanced up at John. "You said you wanted Mexican, right?"

John nodded. "Yeah, what did Chip want?"

Walker took a deep breath as he handed the phone back to his son. "He's got the results back. I know who you and Michael's mother is." John's face turned into shock. "It wasn't your mother, but a lady that," He rubbed the nape of his neck,. "I dated for awhile and plan on marrying. I'm sorry, John."

"It's okay." John squatted down in front of Walker to face him eye to eye. "Me and Michael kind of figured that our mother wasn't really blood related. We saw many pictures of her before her death, and we look nothing like her. Just thought we took after our dad, which we do." He smiled at Walker. "Let's get some Mexican."


	13. Chapter 13

**Later That Day**

Scenery went by in a big blur, his mind so dopey with medication Walker couldn't lift his head from the window. His mouth ached, but the pain so far was rather dull which helped with his drowsiness. He swallowed hard, his mouth feeling like cotton and his throat parched. Very slowly he turned his head towards John to see his son sipping at his water. He glanced over to Walker then handed him the water bottle.

"Hear, drink some water." He stopped the truck, then leaned over to help Walker. "How you feeling, Walker?"

He winced loudly as the water touched his sensitive molars. "I hate being medicated."

"I know that feeling. When I was shot and they put me on those meds, it just didn't feel right." John sighed heavily as he parked the truck. "We're here at your physical therapy. Do you feel like going in today?"

Walker tried to move, but found that caused him to get rather dizzy. "No, can you let them know for me." He hated to ask for John to do this for him, he really wanted to go in, but at the moment all he wanted to do was sleep. "Sorry."

John patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, you got a good excuse. Just rest up here, I'll talk to Terry Mist and see what she says."

In a car, parked not too far away sat Clyde and Johnny, both studying Walker for the best time to make the kill. The Marine had parked and ran inside, leaving the Ranger alone in the pickup. Clyde opened his door, his right hand reaching for the club that he hid under his seat. He took several quick deep breaths then made his way quickly to the gray pickup. His eyes scanned the area around him knowing at this time of day the lot was dark and nearly empty. He shifted the club in his hands then raised it to his side as he stepped up to the window. The Ranger appeared to be asleep, good.

In one quick movement he slammed the window with the club instantly shattering it and before Walker could do anything Clyde pulled the door open. He grabbed hold of the Ranger's shirt collar then yanked him violently out of the truck. He liked having his victims weak, gave him more power over them.

"I should have finished you off in that alley!"

Walker's mind was so foggy he didn't even know what had happened to him till he felt the first hit to his chest. As quickly as his drugged body allowed him to he got to a sitting position just in time to get a hit to the side of his head. Stars began to dance in his vision as another hit came to his head, this one hitting almost in the same spot. Then another hit came this time square in his jaw which made him scream in agony as the club cracked his newly fixed molar.

This got Clyde furious. "You are a stubborn…" He stumbled backwards in pain as Walker landed a square kick to his groin. "Son of a…"

"Dad!" Came John's voice. "Hang on!"

Clyde gritted his teeth knowing he had failed again to kill the Ranger. "I'll be back, Walker."

John skidded around the truck bed as the attacker sprinted away into the shadows. Horrified at what just happened he spun around to see if anybody saw the attack. No one, not a single soul. He cursed then turned his attention to Walker to see him cradling his head. At least he was conscious, which was a very good sign. However, there was a lot of blood coming from a wound to Walker's temple.

"Walker, you okay?" He knelt down to check on his father to see him cradling his jaw. "And you just got that fixed today. Can you get up?"

Walker slowly nodded. "Yeah." He slowly stood up, his motions a little sloppy. "I landed a kick." He turned to John with a lopsided smile. "I thought of where I wanted to kick," He shrugged. "I was aiming for the knee, but it worked none the less."

"How's your head?" John took out a flashlight and tried to shine it in Walker's eyes, but his hand was batted away. "Walker, I need to see if you have a concussion." He sighed heavily as he took out his cell phone. "I'm calling the police." Once he was done with the call he glanced at Walker to see him rapidly blinking. "Here, lay down."

John quickly went to the driver's side, opened the door then climbed in to help Walker lay on his back. Once that was done he sat down then cradled his father's head in his hands. He shook his head not believing he had once again came to late to help Walker.

While the emergency vehicles made their way into the parking lot his father began to fall asleep. "Hang on, dad. Help is on the way." A paramedic came running up to John, to see Walker falling asleep. He gently shook Walker to try to keep him awake. "Need to stay alert, dad."

The paramedic patted John's shoulder. "More then likely suffered a concussion." As John scooted out of the truck, the paramedic stepped in instantly spotting the alert bracelet around Walker's neck. Quickly he took it out from underneath the shirt to read it. "Epilepsy."

John nodded. "He suffered a life threatening head injury about five or six months ago. He's been suffering from seizures ever since then."

"Very well." He pushed the button on his radio. "Have a head injury here, might be serious." As he waited for the stretcher he began to check Walker's vitals. "Hey, Mr. Walker can you hear me?" He made a fist then slowly began to rub the man's sternum. "I need for you to stay awake for me."

Walker's mind was rather groggy and at first he didn't know what had happened to him. Then stabbing pain in his jaw jerked him from his drowsiness. He opened his eyes, or tried to, his eyelids felt as though something was weighing them down. His head throbbed which meant he must have had another seizure, however the pain seemed to keep in rhythm with his heartbeat. What the hell happened to him?

"John?" He swallowed hard as the pain intensified as he talked. "John?"

"Hey, you're finally awake." Came a voice at his side. "You have a concussion, we're taking you to the hospital right now."

Very gradually everything came back to him and if it wasn't for the constant wave of drowsiness, he would have tried to sit up. "The man, did you catch him?"

"Unfortunately not." Walker slowly opened his eyes to see a young paramedic looking down at him. "How are you feeling?"

"A little confused." The ambulance came to a stop, its bay doors instantly opening upon arrival. "My mouth is on fire." He tried to get up, but found they had strapped him down onto the stretcher. "Where's John?"

"Your son is right behind us, with Ranger Trivette." The paramedic helped guide the stretcher out of the ambulance. "Possibly a broken jaw and a concussion!" He proceeded to call out Walker's vitals as the stretcher was wheeled through the hospital to an emergency room. "Patient is awake and coherent. Suffers from epilepsy!"

Walker grimaced as a hand began to feel the right side of his face. "I don't feel any fractures." This got him to visibly relax. "Looks like all you need Mr. Walker is a few x-rays and some scans. Then we'll keep you overnight to keep an eye on you."


	14. Chapter 14

Alex couldn't believe Walker was in the hospital once again for a head injury, so soon after he came home from his last. She ran into the hospital, her mind spinning on what had happened. The man that tried to kill her husband less then a year ago, tried to again. Luckily he didn't seriously hurt Walker, just knocked him around. However, she was rather worried about the hits to his head. He was still recovering from being in a coma, how would this effect him?

"Alex!" She spun around and saw Trivette running up to her. He gave her a big hug then pulled back with a smile. "Walker is okay. He's in oral surgery now to fix his teeth. The hit to his head didn't do anything to his brain, as far as the doctor knows. Miller got called in, should be here in a few minutes."

"That's good news." She relaxed and allowed Trivette to lead her to a chair. "Where's John?"

"Getting coffee." He sat down next to her. "Walker always tends to have the worse luck."

She nodded in agreement as John came walking in with three cups of coffee. "Everything seems to happen to him. Just when you see him bouncing back, something else happens to him."

John shook his head. "I shouldn't have left him in the truck." He bowed his head then sat down across from Alex. "It's my fault that this happened to him."

"No, it's not." Trivette smiled. "From what I hear, if it wasn't for you Walker may be in worse condition right now." He glanced up as Doctor Miller came walking into the waiting room. "How is he, doctor?"

Doctor Miller smiled. "He's going to be just fine. He's sleeping right now, will be out of it for a few days because of the pain medication. The blows to his head, cracked his skull," He raised his hands as Alex let out a soft cry. "But, so far there is no swelling in his brain. We're keeping him over night to keep a close eye on him and by tomorrow afternoon I don't see why he can't leave." He gave Alex a hug then waved to the hallway. "Follow me."

As she stepped up to the recovery ward, she realized that Walker was placed in a duel room, which was good news indeed. Miller walked to the last curtained area where Alex could see her husband laying on a hospital bed, a thick white bandage covering his right temple. Her hand quickly went to her mouth as flashbacks of seeing him in a coma went through her mind.

"He's going to be okay, Mrs. Walker." Miller checked Walker's vitals then smiled at her. "I didn't even put him on I.Vs. The bandage is there since he has twenty stitches and a few staples."

She slowly nodded then made her way to her husband's side. "Walker, sweetie I'm here."

His head rolled over to her, his eyes fluttering slightly. "Sorry."

"It's okay, not your fault." She took hold of his hand then gently kissed him on the forehead. "You get some sleep."

Trivette patted Walker's shoulder. "Just rest up. I'm going to go and find the man that did this to you. I'll make sure he's put up for good."

"You do that." Walker grimaced as his hand went to his jaw. "Sorry, I can't help."

"No problem, just rest up." Trivette nodded at Alex and John. "I'm going to meet up with Sydney and Gage. We need to get Clyde Brookdale off the streets."

**Later at the Company**

"Any connection at all to Clyde Brookdale and Vinnie Marcellinio?" Asked Gage as he rummaged through stacks of police files. "Brookdale was a petty criminal until the day he almost killed Walker." He winced as a piece of paper sliced into his index finger. "Dang it!"

Sydney shook her head. "Trivette, what was Walker doing in that part of the neighborhood?"

"He had a lead on the Marcellinio case." He flipped through his own stacks of paper work. "My question is, why didn't he call me?" He rubbed his face then sipped at his stale coffee. "I've been meaning to ask him, but he honestly doesn't remember that day or why he was there close to the alley." He found Walker's statement within the pile of several others. "According to him, he remembers talking to me the day before about the Marcellinio case then the next memory he has is waking up in the hospital."

Gage shook his head. "Walker knows something, something that he learned the day of his attack that he can't remember now." He rubbed his face. "What he knows, is enough to kill him over."

"Okay." Trivette slowly stood up to write on the dry erase board. "So, Marcellinio's known accomplices has gone up two." He wrote down Brookdale's name and his accomplice's name, Jonathon Harris. "Marcellinio is involved in several illegal activities, the worse ones;" He began to write as he spoke. "Drug and weapon trafficking."

"Drug and weapon…" Gage mumbled as he sifted through the many files on his desk. "Got it!" He got up to show Trivette the file he was holding in his hands. "Manny Calone. He was spotted for the first time in Dallas six months ago. He was arrested at 1305 Yearling Street." He got a puzzled look on his face. "Wait a second, wasn't the alley that Walker was found in on Yearling Street?"

Trivette capped the marker he was holding then turned to Gage. "You're right. Maybe Walker had a lead on Calone. Possibly something he learned that day." He tapped Calone's name on the board. "He may be the man we are looking for to end the case. We need start looking for him and for Brookdale, especially Brookdale since he's the man that's been attacking Walker."

**Hospital, early the next morning**

The room was dimly lit as Walker woke up to a throbbing ache in his jaw and head. He licked his parched lips then turned his head to get a look at Alex who was asleep in a chair next to him. He rolled his head around to get a better look at his surroundings and saw he was in a duel room, which meant that more then likely he had a roommate.

Ever so slowly he pulled himself to a sitting position which woke Alex from her sleep. She smiled at him then made her way to his side.

"Hey, honey." She stroked his hand then kissed him gently on the lips. "How are you feeling?"

"Good." He glanced around him to see they were all alone. "Where's everybody else?"

"Trivette, Gage and Sydney are tracking down the man that did this to you. As for John, he's passed out on the chairs by the window." She glanced at her watch then patted his hand. "It's time for your medication." She sighed heavily. "You missed one dose, hopefully the seizures don't intensify." She patted his hand as she glanced over to the window. "John blames the attack on himself."

Walker shook his head. "It's not his fault." He glanced over at his son to see him sleeping on his back, his arm over his head, the way that Walker usually sleeps when on a couch. He smiled at his son then turned to Alex. "He called me dad. I'm thinking he just blurted it out, he's been calling me Walker ever since then." He sighed heavily. "I want to be a father to them, Alex."

Alex smiled at him. "Just give it time, they'll accept you as a father soon enough."

The first thing that greeted John as he woke up was a painful crick in his side. Grimacing he slowly got up, his hand gingerly holding his chest. As he opened his eyes he instantly noted Walker wide awake and talking to his wife. Boy, was this an awkward feeling. It was as though he just walked into somebody's private conversation, who knows, maybe he did.

"Oh, John you're awake." Alex gave him a huge grin then slowly stood up. "Do you want anything to eat or coffee?"

John smiled at her. "It's okay, ma'am. I'll leave you two alone…"

She shook her head. "Breakfast is on us. What would you like?"

"Doesn't matter to me, ma'am." John stretched being careful with the crick in his side then slowly stood up. "Thank you."

"No problem." She gave Walker a kiss then left the room.

Once she was gone John made his way to Walker's bedside where he could see the injuries done from the attack. There was a nasty bruise on his right cheek and a several stitches in his temple. But Walker didn't appear to be in too much pain, in fact he smiled up at John as he sat down next to the bed.

John took a deep breath then shook his head. "I'm sorry that I allowed this to happen."

Walker patted his hand. "It's okay. Not your fault." He shifted his weight so he was sitting up straighter. "What time is it?"

"Close to five in the morning. You've been asleep off and on for awhile." He grimaced as he got a better look at the wound to Walker's temple. "That's a nasty cut. How do you feel? Honestly?"

"I'm doing really good. Can't wait to get out of here." He glanced at the door as his friends came walking in with food, just the smell made his stomach growl. "Didn't realize how hungry I was."

"The last time you ate was at the Mexican restaurant." John moved the bed table over Walker's lap then grabbed the food containers from Trivette. "What did you all get?"

Gage pulled out a small Styrofoam bowl. "Scrambled eggs for Walker, biscuits and gravy for the rest of us. And, I might add, these are the best in town." He put the bowl in front of Walker who sighed heavily at just eating eggs. "Cheer up, at least your jaw isn't wired shut."

Walker smiled then noted his friends appeared rather ragged almost as though they had no sleep. His face quickly turned to concern. "Trivette, did all of you stay up last night?"

Trivette patted Walker's shoulder. "It's okay. We've done it before."

"What did you all come up with?" Walker scooped up some eggs, took a bite and gingerly chewed knowing the right side of his jaw was still rather tender. "Any leads?"

Gage shook his head. "No, just more names to add to the list." He glanced up at Sydney whose eyes told Walker she was definitely hiding something. "Brookdale is a very shady character. Involved with numerous illegal activities which includes drug and weapon trafficking, car theft," He took a deep breath. "He once was a leg breaker for Marcellinio, however he only did one job before he was promoted to a hitman." He shook his head. "Something isn't right, we're still trying to figure it out."

"I remember you all telling me something about that a few months back." Walker nodded his head. "At least you all have names. Let me know if I can help out."

"Will do." Trivette turned around as Erika came in with Angela. "Hey, Erika."

"Daddy!" Angela came running into the room and onto Walker's bed. "I hope you're not here for long, I don't like it when you're here."

Walker nearly got choked up. "I won't be sweetie." He hugged his daughter tightly then kissed the top of her head. "I'm going to be out of here this afternoon." He glanced passed his friends to see his doctor. "What's going on Doctor Miller?"

"CT scans." He smiled. "It's nothing major, just making sure everything is still okay." He stepped to Walker's side. "Unfortunately I can't let you finish your eggs. Have to schedule in the use of the machine, sorry Walker."

"It's okay." Walker sighed heavily then waved at everybody as they headed out of the room. "See ya'll in a bit."


	15. Chapter 15

Later that day, after the CT scans proved negative Walker found himself working on physical and occupational therapy at the hospital. He didn't really like doing this therapy, he always felt rather embarrassed when he had to read out of children's books. Right now he sat at a table with a children's reading guide in front of him. His therapist, Terry Mist had the same copy in front of her.

She smiled at him. "Read the first page one more time."

Walker rubbed his face then pulled the book closer to him. "The dog is brown." He traced the letters with his index finger. "The cat is…" He squinted at the words on the page. "O…or…orange." He shook his head at the lack of memory on the simple word. He flipped the page then began to read once again. "Fire…truck has a la…la…"

"Ladder." She nodded. "You're doing rather good. Unfortunately I have been noticing some relapses." She took out a folder and began to scan through the contents. "You're roughly at a first grade reading level. However, I have noticed that you don't retain information that you read." She jotted down some notes. "Which could mean a memory problem."

Walker sighed heavily then began to read once again, hoping to prove Terry wrong. "Po…police cars have red and blue lights." He read slow, his mind trying so hard to comprehend the words on the page. However, there was one word that he couldn't understand, couldn't read at all. Frustrated he rubbed his face then tried his hardest to sound it out. Finally he pushed the book away then glanced up at Terry. "How can I get better? I've been doing exercises at home, here and everywhere else I can."

Terry sighed heavily. "You suffered a severe brain injury, Walker. It will take some time for it to rewire itself. You have to be patient." She took the book from him, closed it then took out a pack of flashcards. "Let's go to the flashcards." She showed Walker a card with a word on it. "What does this say?"

"Apple." He sighed heavily as she showed him another card. "Ba…Ba…Balloon." He shook his head at the lack of memory on the simple word. "Car." He began to fidget slightly. "Horse. House. Pineapple." He smiled. "That's the first time I could read that word."

"That's good." Terry nodded as she continued with the flash cards. "One more hour Walker, then we can move on to physical therapy."

**Two Hours Later**

The small physical therapy room had a bed positioned by the wall and a table in the middle. Alex sat in the corner and watched as Walker went through numerous drills to strengthen his mind and body. It hurt her so much to see her once strong husband struggling with simple tasks such as catching a small rubber ball. Anthony bounced the ball towards Walker who barely managed to grab hold of it before it got away from him.

Walker fumbled with the ball then bounced it back. He did this numerous times till Anthony grabbed the ball and leaned backwards in his seat. "Where's the eye patch?"

"Anthony, do I really have to wear it?" Walker turned to Terry to see a disappointed look on her face. "I really don't need it. I'm fine." In fact he may not be, he always had fuzzy vision out of his right eye which effected his depth perception. "I didn't bring it with me."

Terry smiled and handed him a black patch. "Brought one with me. Kind of knew you would forget yours." When Walker put it on his vision did get better. "Now, try catching the ball."

Anthony bounced the ball once again to Walker, however the ball disappeared and landed on his lap. He nearly ripped the eye patch off, instead he picked up the ball then bounced it back to his therapist. Again he bounced it to Walker's right and once again he missed it.

"You need to learn how to use only the left eye." This time Anthony rolled the ball towards Walker who easily grabbed it. "Terry, he has problems with quick movement."

Terry wrote this down in the folder she was holding. "Don't worry, Walker. It will get better in time." She sighed heavily. "I suggest you wear the eye patch everyday. That way it will help you get accustomed to the lack of vision out of that eye."

Walker sighed heavily. "If it helps, I'll do it." He winced as the pain medication began to wear off which made his head throb. "When can we move to the gym?"

"If you're ready, we can do it now." Anthony turned to Alex to see her getting a few pill bottles out of her purse. "But first, let's make sure you take your medication." He patted Walker's shoulder as he got up to get a cup of water. "Don't worry, once we make sure you're not going to pass out on us, we'll go to the gym."

Walker sighed heavily at the new life that laid ahead of him. He will always be doing therapy, always trying to get better. It was hard to deal with it, especially when he was once rather independent and had always done things his way. Back before his head injury he rarely went to the hospital, rarely took medication and now regular checkups was his life. He always had to make sure he took certain pills at certain times, had to take naps if he felt tired. Would he ever truly get back to his old self once again? How long will it take?

He glanced up at Alex to see her smiling at him, that smile that kept him going from day to day. If it wasn't for her love who really knew where he would be at right now. He had to admit to himself that depression threatened to take over his life on numerous occasions. He never wanted to admit it since he knew if he did, he would have to see somebody for it.

Alex's smile faded quickly. "Walker, are you okay?"

That phrase was one that he was really tired of hearing, but instead of lashing out he smiled up at her. "I'm doing okay. Just thinking." He sighed heavily, took the pills from his wife then turned to Anthony and Terry. "I want to start really pushing myself." He could feel the fog of depression try to cloud his thoughts. "Whatever it takes, I want to be my old self again."


	16. Chapter 16

Sorry about the short chapter, I promise the next one will be a little longer. : )

**Four Months Later**

The ranch was alive with conversation and music as people lounged around having a great time on fourth of July. Walker sat in a chair on his back porch drinking tea and laughing it up with Michael and John. In the last few months they have grown very close, especially John and Walker. Thanks to John, Walker was getting much needed strength back to his legs and arms. Though he still had problems with hand eye coordination, he now could do many of the martial art moves he once was able to do before the attack.

Michael took a sip of his beer then patted his brother on the back. "I'm going to see how the food is coming along."

As Michael left John turned to Walker to see the man staring off towards the fields. In the last few months there has been a significant improvement in Walker's attitude and health. Walker had gained considerable amount of weight back, but was still remained rather skinny. His muscle tone may take awhile to get back. But according to Alex and several of Walker's close friends he began to look like his old self again.

His dad slowly rocked back then took a long drink of his tea. "Wish I could see the fireworks this year." He took a deep breath, his fingers tracing the rim of the glass. "Unfortunately I'm not certain if my seizures could be triggered by strobe lights."

The reality of his life now hit Walker once again, but he had slowly learned to cope with the depression that hit him suddenly and usually without warning. He sighed heavily then took a drink of his tea as he watched his daughter run around with a sparkler in hand. She has grown so much in the last few months and soon she'll be three years old.

His watch began to beep, an alarm to remind him to take his medication. "Be back in a bit."

Inside the house he went to the downstairs bathroom where his pills sat high up in the medicine cabinet. He got himself a glass of water then studied himself in the mirror. His hair was finally growing back out, however it was still rather short and he could easily see the thick scars tracing his scalp. There was also the scar tracing his left cheek, which reminded him daily of the attack. Then there was the deep scar in the middle of his throat from the trachea tube which stared back at him from the mirror. At least he got most of his weight back, which filled out his face. He now didn't look like a walking a skeleton.

He took his medication then splashed some water on his face. Who would ever thought he would have to take pills on a daily basis? Mostly, just to help with his seizures and depression. He hadn't had a full blown seizure in over three weeks, which was really good news indeed. However he did have small ones which was just rapid eye blinking or fingers twitching.

"Hey, Walker!" Michael came stumbling into the bathroom, startling him from his thoughts. "I think I should start calling you dad." He gave Walker a hug, his breath reeking of alcohol. "Food is ready."

"How many drinks have you had, Mike?" Walker gave his son a hug as they walked out of the bathroom. "Here on out, no more beers for you? Got it?"

Michael sheepishly nodded. "Yeah, sorry. There's no real beer in Iraq."

Walker laughed. "Well, it's good to have you home, Mike. Let's get some food before Trivette and Gage eats it all."

**Somewhere in Dallas**

It has been way too long, the Ranger was now healthy and getting better each day. Clyde Brookdale pounded the steering wheel of his car, knowing all too well he had ruined the only chance he had at finishing Walker off. He had four months to think on his mistakes and how he could fix them. During that time, he studied up on Walker, his family and friends. He followed them and began to know their daily routines. Soon, he had it figured out, a plan formulated in his head on how to take the Ranger down. Now to actually pull it off.

Marcellinio quickly got into Clyde's car then slammed the door shut. "It's been too long. If you don't kill him by the end of the next month, I will have you killed."

Clyde shook his head. "That's cutting it close."

"It's taking too long!" Marcellinio cursed then rubbed his face. "You were just a petty thief till I took you in and this is how you repay me?" He turned to Clyde and shook his head. "I need to know if you can pull it off or not. If you can't, I'll hire somebody else for the job."

"I can do it." Clyde exhaled deeply then nodded. "Give me two weeks."

Marcellinio beamed and patted the hitman on the shoulder. "That's my man! Prove this to me and you will surely move up." He suddenly turned serious as he stared out the door's window. "What Walker found out that day, _cannot _be said in court."

Clyde chuckled. "I scrambled his brain so much, he has no recollection of that day. From what I hear, the last memory of his was from the day before I tried to kill him."

"However there is still that chance he could remember." Marcellinio took a deep breath. "Just kill him. That way we don't have to worry."


	17. Chapter 17

**Later That Night**

The noise of the fireworks kept him awake for most of the night, which wasn't good. He had to make sure he had enough sleep or else he could suffer from a grand-mal seizure. The house however was rather quiet since everybody was outside watching the fireworks, which for some reason made sleeping that more difficult to do. He laid on his back, in his dark bedroom, trying to force his mind to sleep. After twenty minutes of boredom he finally decided to get up.

Very slowly he made his way downstairs, to the kitchen where he got himself a glass of water. As he walked into the living room he could see Mike sprawled out on the couch, the right side of his body partially hanging off. Walker had a chuckle at this, picked up his reading guide then sat down in the rocking chair next to the couch.

For over three months he would always do reading exercises at home, traveling or in occupational therapy. His reading has improved immensely, however he still had problems with complex sentences. Unfortunately he may never fully regain the ability to read like he use to which left him always frustrated. At least now he could read at roughly third grade level, which opened up his choices of reading material.

Mike groaned then shifted his weight which nearly sent him sliding completely off the couch. Seeing this Walker got up then went to his son to see him still sleeping off the booze. He will have to have a chat with the kid once he wakes up tomorrow. Right now, he had to make sure Mike didn't fall off.

He nudged his son's shoulder. "Hey, Mike. Wake up." When that didn't work, he decided to use brute force to get Mike back onto the couch. "Told you to lay off the drinks."

"As long as I knew him he always drank quite a bit." John came walking into the room, a glass of tea in his hand. "When I meant him, he was drinking it up and any time we get together, he's always drinking." He sat the glass down onto the side table then shook his head. "I'll help you."

Once Mike was settled a little more comfortably on the couch, Walker fell back into the rocker, his mind finally getting tired. John stepped up to him, patted his shoulder then prompted him to get up. Walker waved his son away who sighed heavily then sat across from him on another rocker. He could see John was rather annoyed at him, but he would go to bed when he was ready to. And right now, he wanted to stay up.

"You should be getting to bed." John checked his watch as the back screen door opened and closed numerous times. Trivette, Gage and a Ranger named Harris came walking into the room. "How was the fireworks show?"

Gage sat down on the love seat with a smile. "It was good. Shame you couldn't see it Walker."

Walker sighed heavily. "It's okay, I've seen plenty of fireworks shows before. Once you've seen one, you've seen them all."

Trivette nodded at his friend. "True." His attention quickly went to his watch. "Shouldn't you be in bed? It's really late." He studied his close friend to see the dopey look in Walker's eyes. His right eye drooped a little more which gave him the appearance of always being sleepy. "You're not going to go, are you?" Walker gave him a lopsided smile. "You know what Alex is going to say about this." He watched the smile on his friend's face fade as Walker's hands began to twitch.

This was the first time Ranger Harris saw a seizure in person and he was rather surprised to see it didn't take over Walker's whole body. In fact Trivette, Gage and John didn't appear fazed by what was happening in front of them. They continued talking, as though Walker having a seizure was a common occurrence. After all it's been eight months or so since the attack, seven months since Walker has been home maybe it has gotten to be like an everyday event.

John slowly stood up as the twitching in Walker's hands finally stopped. "Hey, dad. You just had a seizure." Walker blinked several times as his body slumped down into the chair. "Let's get you to bed." He smiled back at the stunned Ranger Harris. "Be right back."

Harris turned to Trivette. "How often does this happen?"

"Good days, twice. Bad days, five times." Trivette smiled. "Luckily the good days far out number the bad ones."

"What triggers them?" Harris shook his head at his curiosity. "Sorry, but it just happened out of the blue like that. One minute, he's fine and talking, the next…"

"It's okay." Gage shrugged. "The small ones, just happen. However if he doesn't get a whole lot of sleep he could have a grad-mal seizure, which shakes the whole body. That is scary." His voice showed his fear and he quickly cleared his throat. "That has happened only a few times in the last couple of months."

Harris took a deep breath then shook his head. "Can't believe Walker will never be a Texas Ranger again. It's so hard to even think how the Company will be like without him." He sipped his beer. "At least he's alive." He smiled broadly. "At least he's alive."

**Two Weeks Later**

In a corner of Terry's office Walker sat at a small table reading and rereading the guide in front of him. He did this for nearly an hour each day, which always bored him to the point where he couldn't focus after just thirty minutes. Finally Terry patted his hand, took the book away then laid an activity book in front of him. Two months ago he began to do word finds and other drills to try and get his brain to reconnect. It seemed to work ever so slowly.

He grabbed a pencil then pulled the book in closer so he could read it better. His right eye never fully regained sight, and according to Doctor Miller if he didn't gain vision back by now he never will. He got accustomed to the blurriness out of that eye, though on occasions it did give him headaches. In that case he would throw on the eye patch, which relieved quite a bit of strain.

"Okay, find the words for me." Terry held the guide in front of her. "Take your time."

Walker hated word finds, everything jumbled together in one big mess. It took him nearly fifteen minutes to finally find one word. He circled it then rubbed his face in frustration.

"Tuna." It took him ten more minutes to find the next one. "Carp." He put the pencil down and shook his head. "I want to move onto something else."

Terry appeared rather shocked. "Are you quitting on me, Walker. For as long as I've known you, I've never seen you just stop like this." She sighed heavily. "I told you to take your time. Finding words, is the most challenging thing for you. To get better, you do what?"

"Keep trying." Walker sighed heavily, picked up the pencil then began to hunt for words. "Sword…fish." He circled it then went on the hunt for yet another word.

Nearly an hour later he completed the word find and went on to writing drills. This proved more difficult then reading and a lot more challenging. Ever since his release from the hospital most thought he had no problem with writing and in fact neither did he till he had to write down his report on the incident. Then he quickly came to the realization that he couldn't remember how to make letters or numbers. The good thing, writing quickly came back to him once he began to practice, however he now had to work on how to spell words.

Terry smiled as he spelled out the words on the page. "You're picking up new information, which is really good." She took out his folder, jotted down some notes then began to study him once again. "How is the memory, Walker?"

"Really good." He wrote the word "beach" then glanced up at her. "Though, I have noticed that I've been having problems with patterns." He looked up from his activity book. "I was playing a game with Angela the other day, had a lot of problems with it," He took a deep breath to swallow down his pride. "I couldn't remember where the pieces were."

"I see." She scooted her chair backwards, grabbed a game then came back to the table. "Is this similar to the game you played?"

Walker nodded. "Yeah, that's exactly it."

"Hmmm…How long have you had this problem, Walker?"

"Awhile." He saw Terry's disappointed look which got him feeling a bit bad that he had held it in for so long. "I just thought it would get better…"

Terry shook her head in disappointment. "Walker, it's been over six months, you should've told me sooner." She scooted the chair backwards again, picked up a small box then came back to the table. "That stubbornness of yours is going to do you in, Walker."

"So I hear." Walker watched as she took off the lid revealing several multi-colored squares. "What's this?"

"It's a test on pattern recognition." She tisked as she took the squares from the box. "I should have done this test when you first came to me. However, you had a similar test done at the hospital and according to them you passed." She glanced up at him. "You did do a test like this, right?" She quickly noticed Walker's confused look. "I can't believe this got missed."

Walker shrugged. "I just had problems with word recognition. That was known almost as soon as I was able to talk after my coma. I never mentioned anything about patterns, saw no point."

She took out a book from the drawer in the table, flipped to the first page then arranged the blocks in a simple pattern. After she was done she leaned back and waved towards them.

"Remember that pattern, Walker." She waited a few minutes till she leaned forward, flipped all the blocks to different sides then leaned back into her seat. "Rearrange the blocks in the pattern that I just showed you. I will time you to see how well you do."

"Terry, can I just get back to writing? I see no point in doing this drill. All I came here for is…"

"Time is ticking, Walker."

He grumbled then began to fiddle with the little squares trying desperately to remember the sequence he was given a few moments before. How could forget something so simple? He had done tests like this numerous times, why couldn't he get it? After about a minute he began to see the pattern in his mind, but couldn't quite work it out with the blocks. Embarrassed he began to get flustered which made it harder for him to figure out the pattern.

Terry instantly saw this and jotted down more notes. "We'll be adding this to the daily routines."


	18. Chapter 18

**This is the last chapter. Will it continue? Who knows. :) Thanks for reading and the replies. **

**Later That Day**

After being humiliated at his occupational therapy lessons Walker found it really hard to concentrate on the drills that John put him through. After only twenty minutes of hand eye coordination drills John stopped then shook his head. Walker cursed under his breath then sat down heavily onto the mat, ashamed at himself for letting his embarrassment take over his mind.

"What's going on?" John took off the focus pads then sat down in front of Walker. "Did therapy go that badly?"

Walker slowly nodded. "Yeah, I did." He took a deep breath then looked up at his son. "Just found out about something that will slow down therapy."

"What is it?" When Walker didn't answer he sighed heavily. "Listen, you need to talk this out."

"Talk what out? I'm fine, I just need to clear my head." Walker began to stretch his arms as he tried desperately to avoid his son's glare. "Let's just get back to the drills."

"Tell me what happened at therapy." John cursed at his father's quiet stubbornness then stood up. "I'm getting tired of your pride. I've dealt with it enough!" He shook his head. "I don't know how Trivette and Alex handle it, guess their just accustomed to your prideful stubbornness." He began to pace back and forth. "I'm not sure if I can get use to it."

Walker was so stunned by John's outburst that he actually began to feel worried about their relationship. And then another emotion came over him like a wave. Fear. Why was he feeling fear? Wait. This was the feeling he always got when something bad was about to go down. He hadn't felt this sensation since the day of his attack. Almost instantly memories came at him, ones he thought he lost that day. He tried to focus on John's words, but found himself quickly fading.

_Shadows. Light. He stepped into an alley, why he couldn't really remember. He had heard a woman's scream. No wait, a young girl's. In the alley he saw her whimpering, cowering in a door of a building. He had bent down to check her out, she seemed scared._

"_Run." She said. "Run."_

_He felt confused then heard a rustle from behind. He turned to check it out to see a large chunk of asphalt hurdling towards him. Pain. Unbelievable pain. He couldn't breath, couldn't see, couldn't even think. Footsteps. Voices. His eyes now open. How? He saw a man, smiling, gripping the large stone chunk. Horror. Fear._

"_No." Was that him, didn't sound like him. "Don't."_

_The man raised the chunk of rock. Slow. Time seemed to have stopped. Blinding pain as the heavy object slammed into his face. Bones cracked, blood splattered. Numbness. Then blackness._

John ran to Walker who had began to sweat and shake, his eyes glazed over. He wasn't having a seizure, the breathing was too deep. As he got nearer he could hear his father mumbling something over and over again. Flashback? That had to be it.

"Dad, hey dad it's okay, it's just a flashback." Walker's eyes blinked several times as they began to clear. "It's okay." He felt so bad for saying the words he just said and began to get worried. "Dad, you're scaring me."

The fog in Walker's mind lifted enough for him to see John's face in front of him. His son appeared to be crying, why would that be? Then he remembered what he had just seen and buried his head in his hands. He began to cry, something he hasn't done since Angela's birth. Man, was this ever embarrassing, especially in front of John.

John gave him a hug then patted his back. "Let's get something to eat."

**Outside the Gym**

Two hours, that's all the time he had to wait it out before he attempted to kill the Ranger, once again. He turned to Johnny to see him nibbling on his fingernails, his foot shaking nervously. He didn't really want to do this so Clyde had to bully him into coming with him. He flipped open a newspaper he had brought along then began to read. He went through three pages before he felt Johnny frantically tapping his shoulder. Irritated he pulled the paper down to see Walker and his son exited the gym.

"Shit!" He threw the paper down then started his car up. "They weren't suppose to leave till another two hours. Something must have happened." He sped up then cut the men off in broad daylight, knowing it was a risk, but one he had to take. As he got out of the car he grabbed his club then ordered Johnny to cover the kid. "Walker! I'm back to kill you!

John tried to push his father back, but Walker wouldn't budge. "Dad! Get out of here!"

Walker shook his head. "No!" The feeling he felt in the gym didn't go away, in fact it just intensified making him shake. He stared the man down that had tried to take his life several months ago. "If you want to fight, let's fight!"

Brookdale twirled the club in his hand then laughed at the Ranger's words. "Do you think you're ready!"

He watched as Johnny rushed the son, using Walker's lack of vision to his advantage. Before anybody had time to react Johnny tackled the son to the ground then slammed the club he was holding hard into the man's face.

"NO!" Walker rushed at his son's attacker who threatened to hit him again. "Stop! Please, don't hurt him!" John moaned, his hand going to his broken noise. "John! Hang on!"

Clyde began to laugh, but as Walker spun around he quickly stopped. The look the Ranger had in his eyes showed a man possessed with anger. He swallowed hard, flexed his hand tighter around the club then ran towards Walker. The Ranger stood his ground till Clyde came just a few feet from him then Walker moved to the side. As he did so, his knee went up, driving into Clyde's stomach. He fell to his knees, gasping for air, his hand still gripping the club.

Walker stared down at the man who had tried to kill him three times. "Just give up, Brookdale." He jumped back as the man swung the club, trying to hit his legs. Walker swung his leg back, ready to slam his shoe into the man's face when he heard a loud smack and a cry of pain. "John!" His attention went to his son who was now cradling his bloody face. "Stop it!"

Distracted Walker didn't notice Clyde climbing to his feet till it was too late. He turned towards his attacker in time to get a hard hit to the side of his face. Pain immediately shot through his jaw as he heard it crack. Not good. His right side had the most damage done during the first attack and he could feel his retainer had been bent. He quickly popped it out of his mouth, threw it on the ground then got into his fighting stance.

"Fake teeth! Man, I really messed you up, didn't I?" Clyde began to circle Walker, desperately trying to get into his blind spot. "Johnny, force him to stand." Johnny pulled on the son's shirt till he got him standing, which gave Walker a clear view of his bloody face. "Walker, your son will suffer!" Johnny slammed his club into the man's right knee which made him cry out in pain.

Hearing his son's cries of agony tore at Walker's heart, which got him distracted once again. He saw movement to his right, a blurry image coming straight towards him. Instinctively he raised his right arm which blocked the club from hitting his face. However, Clyde swung with such force it instantly broke Walker's arm. He let out a cry of pain as he stumbled backwards.

"Dad!" John grunted as the man hit him in the lower back with the club. "Watch out!"

John's warning came too late, Clyde slammed the club straight into Walker's skull, right above the right ear. Pain shot through his head, but Walker had to remain calm. He began to relax his body, to allow his brain to focus. He got back into his fighting stance, his mind now so focused he barely could feel the pain in his arm and head.

Brookdale swung the club once again, this time Walker managed to grab it then twisted. This got a wince from his attacker who still held firm on the wooden weapon. Walker brought his elbow up, hoping to slam it straight into Brookdale's nose, however he missed and managed to hit the eye instead. Stupid depth perception. He tried again, this time landing on his mark.

"My nose!" Clyde spat out blood and stumbled back. "I'm going to get you for this!"

Walker rushed in with several punches while Brookdale was slightly distracted. He landed several which sent fire up his injured right arm. Then he slammed his knee straight into Brookdale's chest, which got a crack and a yell from the attacker. He laced his hands together then slammed down so hard on Brookdale's shoulder he could actually feel his broken bones shifting. He let out a cry of agony then collapsed in a heap, the pain so powerful it took over his mind. But he had to see if Brookdale was down.

"Clyde!" The other attacker let go of John who fell onto the cement. "No!"

"It's over." Walker grimaced as he glanced at Brookdale to see him laying on his back, out cold. "Give up." Police sirens filled the air which got the man nervous. "Drop the weapon."

"No!" The man sprinted off, leaving his friend behind.

"Dad!" John quickly clambered over to Walker as a police unit pulled up next to them. "Are you okay! I'm so sorry for what I said in there. I didn't…"

Walker sat up with his son's help, his head swimming as he did. "It's okay." He smiled which reminded him of his broken jaw. "How are you?"

"My face hurts like hell." He patted his father's shoulder as a paramedic ran up to them. "Help him first."

The paramedic nodded and urged Walker to lay back down who complied without arguement. "I see medical alert tag."

Walker nodded. "Epilepsy." He watched as police officers picked Brookdale off the ground, handcuffed him then read him his rights. This sent such satisfying relief through Walker's mind that he relaxed then smiled. "It's over." He glanced to his son to see him being taken care. "It's finally over."


End file.
